Wallaces Farmer

National Biodiesel Board chief will discuss what’s ahead at event Jan. 29 in Altoona.

January 8, 2019

3 Min Read
biodiesel sign
KEY QUESTION: Will Congress provide a long-term extension of the federal biodiesel tax incentive?

National Biodiesel Board CEO Donnell Rehagen will highlight the American success story of biodiesel and discuss what is on the horizon for the nation’s leading advanced biofuel Jan. 29 at the Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit. The annual event, sponsored by the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA), will be at Prairie Meadows Conference Center in Altoona, northeast of Des Moines.

“Year after year, the biodiesel industry continues to outpace and outproduce expectations,” Rehagen says. “Supporting more than 64,000 jobs and reducing greenhouse gasses by up to 86%, biodiesel has been a great success for rural economies and our environment. The future is bright for biodiesel, and I’m excited to discuss the opportunities that lay before us and the questions we must answer together as an industry.”

Biodiesel industry continues to grow
The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) is the national trade association representing America's first advanced biofuel. The group works to create sustainable biodiesel industry growth through education, communication, governmental affairs, technical and quality assurance programs. 

“Under Donnell’s leadership, the National Biodiesel Board has made great strides in creating new opportunities for the biodiesel industry,” IRFA managing director Lucy Norton says. “We look forward to have him share his vision of what comes next for biodiesel.”

The summit is free to attend and open to the public, but registration is required. To register or learn more about the summit, visit iowarenewablefuelssummit.org

Will Congress extend biodiesel tax incentive?
Another topic for discussion is whether Congress will provide a long-term extension of the federal biodiesel tax incentive.

The NBB and more than 50 member companies and affiliated organizations recently delivered a letter to U.S. House and Senate leaders, urging them to enact a multiyear extension of the biodiesel and renewable diesel tax incentive. In February 2018, Congress retroactively extended the tax incentive for 2017, leaving it expired for 2018 and beyond. The letter welcomed a recent proposal for a seven-year extension of the tax incentive.

In the letter, biodiesel industry stakeholders said, “We believe that a multiyear extension of the tax incentive would help the biodiesel industry achieve substantial growth over the next several years, creating significant new employment opportunities, an important market for ag products and renewable feedstocks, as well as opportunities for rural economic growth.”

Tax incentive would provide certainty
The U.S. biodiesel and renewable diesel market has grown from about 100 million gallons in 2005, when the incentive was first implemented, to nearly 2.9 billion gallons in 2016.

“The biodiesel industry has long advocated for a multiyear extension of the tax incentive,” says Kurt Kovarik, vice president of federal affairs for NBB. “Congress can provide the certainty and predictability for producers and feedstock providers that will help us achieve our potential.”

Made from an increasingly diverse mix of resources such as recycled cooking oil, soybean oil and animal fats, biodiesel is a renewable, clean-burning diesel replacement that can be used in existing diesel engines without modification. It is the nation’s first domestically produced, commercially available advanced biofuel.

NBB is the U.S. trade association representing the entire biodiesel value chain, including producers, feedstock suppliers and fuel distributors, as well as the U.S. renewable diesel industry. For more about biodiesel, visit biodiesel.org

Source: IRFA, NBB

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