January 6, 2014
BY Ron Kotrba
Minnesota Department of Agriculture Commissioner Dave Frederickson is touring the Land of 10,000 Lakes to support the state’s ethanol and biodiesel industries, and to ask the U.S. EPA to reconsider its stance on the renewable fuel standard (RFS). The EPA’s proposed 2014 reduction in RFS required volumes would result in an estimated $610 million dollars in losses and more than 1,500 jobs cut from the Minnesota economy and its workforce, according to a 2012 state report.
On Jan. 6 Frederickson is scheduled to visit three ethanol plants: a Poet facility in Preston, another Poet plant in Albert Lea, and the Corn Plus Cooperative in Winnebago.
On Jan. 7, the commissioner is scheduled to tour Minnesota Soybean Processors, a soybean crush and biodiesel production facility in Brewster. He will also visit Highwater Ethanol in Lamberton.
Minnesota has long been a pioneer in supporting renewable fuels. It was the first state to implement an ethanol fuel mandate. In the mid-2000s, Minnesota also became the first state to require biodiesel in its diesel fuel, beginning at 2 percent and then moving to 5 percent. This summer, the state will be requiring 10 percent biodiesel in its diesel fuel during the warmer months, which will be scaled back to 5 percent during the cold season.
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For more information on the tours, click here.
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The U.S EPA on July 17 released data showing more than 1.9 billion RINs were generated under the RFS during June, down 11% when compared to the same month of last year. Total RIN generation for the first half of 2025 reached 11.17 billion.
The U.S. EPA on July 17 published updated small refinery exemption (SRE) data, reporting that six new SRE petitions have been filed under the RFS during the past month. A total of 195 SRE petitions are now pending.
The USDA has announced it will delay opening the first quarterly grant application window for FY 2026 REAP funding. The agency cited both an application backlog and the need to disincentivize solar projects as reasons for the delay.
CoBank’s latest quarterly research report, released July 10, highlights current uncertainty around the implementation of three biofuel policies, RFS RVOs, small refinery exemptions (SREs) and the 45Z clean fuels production tax credit.
The U.S. EPA on July 8 hosted virtual public hearing to gather input on the agency’s recently released proposed rule to set 2026 and 2027 RFS RVOs. Members of the biofuel industry were among those to offer testimony during the event.