News

Ethanol production steady into next year

Ethanol production is forecast to remain near current levels through 2016.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) in its August short-term energy outlook, says production averaged 935,000 barrels per day last year and is expected to hold steady into next year.

Monte Shaw, one of the founders of the America’s Renewable Future coalition, tells Brownfield the EIA numbers are useful but constrained by one important fact.

“Their energy experts are not allowed to project what they think will happen in the future.  They are required to project what they think will happen in the future based on current policy.”

He says given the scaled back Renewable Fuels Standard, it’s not surprising that the numbers would be fairly flat.

“If we leave in place the 90 percent petroleum monopoly and don’t have a tool to crack through that to provide actual competition, then you’re not going to see ethanol use grow in the United States very much.”

Shaw says there are potential export opportunities for ethanol, but first he’d like to see the fuel used to reduce prices at the pump in America.