Final week, Progress Power welcomed its members from throughout the U.S. to Washington, D.C. for the 14th-annual Progress Power Biofuels Summit (GEBS)—the American biofuels trade’s premier advocacy occasion.
Whereas in D.C., the attendees met with their elected senators and representatives to inform the trade’s story, and advocate for pro-biofuels coverage priorities like decreasing gas costs and carbon emissions by securing year-round E15, constructing a powerful sustainable aviation gas (SAF) market by utilizing the GREET lifecycle evaluation mannequin to use tax credit from the Inflation Discount Act (IRA), and investing in infrastructure to make sure that biofuels can proceed to play a task in addressing the nation’s local weather challenges, amongst different points.
Setting the Stage
CEO Emily Skor kicked off the summit by thanking members for lending their voices, their time, and their vitality to Progress Power’s efforts to elect pro-biofuels candidates and to inform the trade’s story to lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
Listening to Straight from the Biden Administration
Following Skor’s speech, attendees heard from U.S. Division of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, who emphasised the significance of seizing the alternatives obtainable for our trade, particularly sustainable aviation gas (SAF).
All through his remarks, Vilsack memorably demonstrated his dedication to the problems that matter most to biofuels producers and their farm companions. He talked in regards to the diversified, worthwhile, and sustainable way forward for American agriculture and the way “sustainable aviation gas is a critically essential element of that.”
He harassed that our trade must proceed to work on discovering methods to convey down the carbon depth (CI) of our merchandise to be engaging to the airline firms seeking to broaden their SAF use. The airways have made it clear they need SAF produced with all kinds of feedstocks, and the Administration needs it too.
Biofuels Summit members additionally heard from Division of Power Deputy Assistant Secretary Michael Berube, Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), U.S. Consultant Nikki Budzinski (IL-13), and White Home Nationwide Local weather Advisor Ali Zaidi, who, very like Vilsack, highlighted the Administration’s dedication to together with biofuels in its efforts to fight local weather change.
“I believe the trade ought to open its aperture and attempt to seize extra decarbonization pathways. Certainly there may be alternative within the transportation sector, and that’s the one I believe we’ve been benefiting from most aggressively, however now you’re different components of the transportation sector– going at aviation, going at marine–however how will we additionally leverage this software within the constructed atmosphere, within the energy sector?” Zaidi requested. “Within the constructing sector there are locations the place the logistics of gas will outcompete the logistics of different methods to get you from level A to Level B, and we wish to be your companion in considering via these market growth methods.”
Thanking Our Champions
Assembly with congressional workplaces on key coverage points is the first purpose of the Biofuels Summit, however so is thanking our congressional biofuels champions for every little thing they do to help our trade. As members carried out just below 150 Hill conferences, they introduced Fueling Progress Awards to these elected officers from throughout the nation who’ve championed the RFS and homegrown biofuels to help ethanol producers and the agricultural financial system.
