Ethanol in the News

There were several ethanol stories in the news today. It was a mixed bag. From BusinessWeek: Ethanol’s Growing List of Enemies Paul Hitch has spent his entire life raising cattle and hogs on a stretch […]

Refining 101: Summer Gasoline

Just what is summer gasoline? Twice a year, in the fall and in the spring, you hear about the seasonal gasoline transition. However, most people probably don’t understand what this actually means. AAA recently provided […]

Energy Heating Up Inflation

I am not quite sure why this was a surprise: Producer prices unexpectedly jump 1.3% There were two major culprits identified: Energy and food. However, the food component was also related to energy: Food prices […]

OPEC Holds Steady

I have been trying to get inside the mind of OPEC lately and predict what they would do at this week’s meeting. Worldwide crude inventories have been falling, so the market appears to be undersupplied […]

When Will Saudi Arabian Oil Production Peak?

The eventual decline of oil production in Saudi Arabia will likely have a profound impact on all of our lives. This event will result in energy shortages around the world, and depleting oil supplies will […]

Conflicts of Interest

Critics often charge me with a conflict of interest for my position on grain ethanol. They suggest that I have something to gain by opposing grain ethanol. Often, a charge of bias will be the […]

Inventories are Falling Fast

There has been a lot of speculation lately over whether the Saudi oil production cuts over the past year have been voluntary. I have argued that they were voluntary based on a combination of what […]

Why Are Gas Prices Rising?

Gas prices are once again headed higher, and most people are probably wondering why. The Charleston Gazette (1) provides a typical reaction: Lee Franc, a client manager from St. Petersburg, spent about $40 to put […]

The Handy-Dandy Khosla Refuter

The web site Seeking Alpha has just published a new article on ethanol: Ethanol: A Few Myths Debunked To be honest, there are so many misconceptions and myths in the article that a better name […]

More Amateurs to Build Ethanol Plants

I couldn’t make this stuff up if I tried. The following was called to my attention in an e-mail earlier today after Ron Steenblik uncovered the story: Yuma doctor hopping on board booming ethanol trend […]