New York | Reuters — The U.S. oil industry is seeking to forge an alliance with the nation’s corn growers and biofuel producers to lobby against the Biden administration’s push for electric vehicles, but is so far meeting a cool reception, according to multiple sources familiar with the discussions. The effort marks an unusual attempt […] Read more
U.S. oil industry seeks unusual alliance with Farm Belt against electric vehicle agenda
'We weren't born yesterday'
Trump administration mulls industry-wide biofuel waiver
Comment period would end after Trump's exit
New York | Reuters — The Trump administration is considering requests from the oil refining industry and its backers for a sweeping nationwide waiver to exempt them from their obligations to blend biofuels, a measure they argue would help them weather the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. U.S. President Donald Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency […] Read more
U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear biofuel waiver case
Reuters — The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to review a lower court ruling that severely limited the government’s powers to exempt small refineries from the nation’s biofuels law, rekindling a long-running dispute between the oil and corn industries. The decision came after appeals by refining companies that argued the 10th Circuit Court’s decision […] Read more
Biden transition team holds talks with biofuel groups -sources
New York | Reuters – U.S. President-elect Joe Biden’s transition team has held calls with biofuel groups on topics including compliance with U.S. biofuel blending laws and Biden’s low-carbon climate vision, according to two sources familiar with the conversations. The discussions with biofuel trade groups as well as POET, a top company in the cellulosic […] Read more
Husky, Cenovus shareholders approve merger deal
Cenovus to be Western Canada's biggest ethanol, DDGS producer
Reuters — Cenovus Energy’s $6.07 billion deal to buy Husky Energy was approved by the shareholders of the two companies on Tuesday, creating Canada’s No. 3 oil and gas producer in a rapidly consolidating industry. Cenovus said 93 per cent of shareholder votes were cast in favour of the merger at a special meeting, while […] Read more
New greening programs planned for ag alongside carbon tax hike
Carbon price to hit $170 per tonne by 2030
A new federal climate plan which further cranks up taxes on carbon emissions also includes pledges of new programs to help sink more carbon into farmland. The government on Friday released the sequel to its 2016 Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change — a “strengthened” climate plan, titled A Healthy Environment and a […] Read more
U.S. fuel industry frazzled as EPA misses biofuel volumes deadline
COVID-19 fallout complicates process
New York | Reuters — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was set to miss a deadline Monday to announce how much renewable fuel the nation’s refiners must blend into their fuel mix next year, raising uncertainty in the fuel market and prompting one biofuel association to threaten to take the agency to court. Under federal […] Read more
Bayer plans more cost cuts, impairment charges
Pandemic now expected to hit crop science wing
Berlin | Reuters — German drugs and chemical company Bayer announced plans on Wednesday for more than 1.5 billion euros (C$2.34 billion) of cost cuts as of 2024 and said it would take impairment charges on its agricultural business as it battles with low commodity prices. Bayer said that the impact of the coronavirus on […] Read more
Trump’s EPA sides with farmers over refiners on biofuel waivers
New York | Reuters — The Trump administration said on Monday it rejected scores of requests from U.S. oil refiners for waivers that would have retroactively spared them from their obligation to blend biofuels like ethanol into their fuel, delivering a win for farmers and a blow to the oil industry just ahead of the […] Read more
Green Plains sues ADM, alleging ethanol market manipulation
Chicago | Reuters — Green Plains Inc., one of the biggest U.S. ethanol producers, sued Archer Daniels Midland on Tuesday, accusing the global grain trader of manipulating the price of the biofuel to profit from its positions in the derivatives market. Green Plains filed the proposed class action with the U.S. District Court of Nebraska, […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
