Ethanol demand in Minnesota’s declining

[Chuck]

The subsidy given to ethanol blenders was cut this year from 51 cents per gallon to 45 cents, a figure based on pure ethanol.

Alex Robinson - JOURNALSTAR - July 3, 2009

Is it the recession, trimmed subsidies, or disfavor? --Ed.

Minneapolis - Minnesota has been an unofficial testing ground for using ethanol to fuel vehicles, but after years of steady increases, interest appears to be waning.

Despite a push from the governor and an increase in the number of so-called flexible-fuel vehicles on the road — which can run on either gasoline or a mostly ethanol blend — sales of E85 have dipped in recent months, beyond the normal decline in winter months.

In February, sales of E85, a cleaner-burning fuel consisting of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline, hit their lowest mark since 2006, according to a new report by the Minnesota Department of Commerce. Sales, which bottomed out around 1 million gallons per month, started to rebound this spring but are still lagging last year’s numbers.... [Read More]

[abcdpeterson]

I live in Minnesota, I think when Gas prices were climbing E85's lower price was getting a few converts. Now that Gas is no longer considered excessively expensive people see no reason to use E85.

People know it won't give better mileage, and the owners manuals of those I have talked to says to only switch when tank is almost empty.
price point needs to be lower than gas by enough to put up with a harder time finding stations with E85.

And now most people also know it highly questionable if the production of E85 even saves that much.

[chilimac02]

I'd like to see ethanol go away. I really think that the best way to produce it would be from something like switchgrass. But that is using land that could be food producing. Maybe if we can make ethanol out of garbage (there is a swiss company using enzymes to try this), then it would be feasible. But, I'd rather just work on increasing efficiency with conventional gasoline/electric hybrids.

[BillyK]

I can't wait for the thousand of ethanol blender pumps that have been proposed. It will be great to purchased a fuel made here in the USA from a variety of feedstocks--Dow alage to ethanol production in the south (Florida) and southwest (Arizona), Corn ethanol in the upper Midwest, Coskta sugarcane production in Florida, Coskta cellulose production in Pennyslvania and elsewhere, Range cellulose ethanol production in Georgia and what evere else arrives. Yes sir, it beats forking over our hard earned money to foreign governments or terroristist groups that want to eliminate all of us. It is too bad most American's are clueless to the amount of tax breaks given to Big Oil. Oh my gosh, eliminate these tax breaks (20x the amount of ethanol) and guess what the price of gasoline would be? Would you care to pay $10 a gallon?

[worthywads]

^

There is a big difference between Tax Break, and Subsidy. To think a Tax Break costs you money is to think the government owns all income first and by not taxing 100% is to give a tax break.

Since ethanol doesn't actual generate much revenue they don't get tax breaks, they get subsidies and import tariffs which cost us money to keep them alive, that is taking money from me and you to PAY THEM.

Show me the $10 a gallon evidence.

This study says gas should be $14, with some of the most creative accounting since Enron.

http://www.icta.org/doc/Real%20Price...20Gasoline.pdf

It says worst case scenario tax breaks are 17.8 billion or 7 CENTS a gallon.

Subsidized Parking = People get to park free and this is like not having to pay therefore it is like getting an income that could be taxed but it isn't = 199 billion or $1.67 a gallon. See page 32-33.

More insane logic like is the only way to get to $10 without tax breaks.