Looks like May ethanol prices are about $1.57 per gallon versus $1.49 for RBOB gas. If you add the extra expense to transport the ethanol as well as the 51 cent blenders credit on top of the lower energy per gallon of ethanol, the cash price is a little higher per gallon and even higher when measured per mile traveled. And you might as well flush the subsidy down the toilet.
This whole debate of you folks beating on ethanol,
and stupid NY writers beating on it, is tiresome.
A few ethanal companies have to re-organize and
we get crap stories that the whole thing is failing.
That is silly considering that over a 100 plants are
doing ok, when compared to our auto industry,where 2/3
are ready to go under.
First of all, farmers get no subsidy as corn prices are
above the price support limit.The oil companies will
get about a 5 billion dollar tax credit for blending
in ethanol. But the oil companies get tax credits
on about everything they do and the blenders credit is
like 5% of all the credits oil companies get.
And it is a drop in the bucket compared to the bailouts.
Some oil companies are buying ethanol plants as it
adds to the supply which puts a down pressure on the
prices. Before ethanol, gas was higher than diesel as it
took more to refine it, But having the billions of gal
of ethanol, which during the high price time was way over
a dollar less than gas, has kept the prices down
compared to not having it. Over the years it has saved
consumers at the gas pump, the equivalent of the 5 billion
tax credit, every two weeks. That’s 100 billion a year.
As far as ethanol plants— the stupids that figure out
the cost benefits all forget the huge value of processed
high protein feed that is basic output of these plants.
With dollar value of twice that of ethanol, which
in reality is a by-product. And the only reason for
financial problems of the plants, isn’t the crap being
being bandied about ethanol, but the high price the
plants had to pay for the corn the last couple years.
Said high price driven crazy, by high oil/energy costs
and the speculators screwing around in the corn
market.Well the speculators are busted, corn about half
of its high, other inputs at the farm slowly getting
back on an even keel, and the plants will still
put about 10-12 billion gals of fuel out, helping
to keep prices a little lower.And less money going
overseas to terrorists. Ed