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Biodiesel Supply: How Much Can We Produce?. James A. Duffield Office of Energy Policy and New Uses, USDA Jduffield@oce.usda.gov Presented at the Clean Cities Congress and Expo May 7-10, 2006, Phoenix, Arizona. U.S. Production of Feedstocks from Crops.
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Biodiesel Supply: How Much Can We Produce? James A. Duffield Office of Energy Policy and New Uses, USDA Jduffield@oce.usda.gov Presented at the Clean Cities Congress and Expo May 7-10, 2006, Phoenix, Arizona.
U.S. Biodiesel Feedstock Supply 4.0 2.74 1.30
U.S. Distillate Fuel Oil Use 62 Billion Gallons Off-Highway Other Electric Power 1% 1% Farm 4% 5% Commercial and Industry 9% Residential Transportation 11% 69% Source: Energy Information Administration, Fuel Oil and Kerosene Sales 2004
Current Issues • Do we have enough feedstock to replace petroleum diesel in the U.S.? No • How Much Domestic Crop Oil and Animal Fat Could be Used for Biodiesel? • Can we expand our feedstock base? Yes
How Much Crop Oil and Animal Fat Could be Used for Biodiesel? Current Uses • Most Used for Edible Purposes -- salad and cooking oil, baking and frying fats, margarine, lard, tallow, and animal feed • A small amount is used for inedible purposes – soap, cosmetics, surfactants, lubricants, paints, solvents, resins, emulsifiers, pesticides, fatty acids, printing inks, and biodiesel
Most Fats and Oils Used in High-Valued Food Markets Animal Feeds Inedible Products 9% 11% Food Products 80% Source: USDA, Economic Research Service, 2005
Economic Dilemma • A biodiesel producer’s input costs are relatively high because they must compete for their primary input in high-valued food markets. 2. The selling price of biodiesel is relatively low because it must compete in the fuel market with petroleum diesel, which historically has a lower value than animal fats and oil.
Production cost of biodiesel Cost per gallon • Feedstock cost ($0.16 – 0.30/pd) $1.20 - 2.25 • Average credit for Glycerin (0.10) • Net feedstock cost 1.10 - 2.15 • Average cash operating expenses 0.46 • Capital Cost 0.13 Total cost using soybean oil: $1.69 - 2.74 Total cost using yellow grease: $1.33 - 1.86
Spot price of No 2 diesel U.S. Gulf Coast weekly prices • April 2006 prices ranged between $2.04 - 2.21 • High price of 2005 was about $2.90 • Low price of 2005 was about $1.11 Recently biodiesel has been price competitive with No 2 diesel and there was a period last summer when biodiesel was selling at a lower price than petroleum diesel.
Historically, Biodiesel Feedstocks Cost More Than the Selling Price of Petroleum Diesel Cents per gallon Soybean oil No. 2 Diesel Source: USDA and Energy Information Administration
If Biodiesel Growth Continues, Where is the Feedstock Going to Come From? • Redirect Exports • Increase Imports • Grow More Crops
U.S. Exports of Soybeans, Fats, and Oils 1382 256 161 103 1900 Source: Oil Crops Situation and Outlook Yearbook, ERS, USDA, 2005
Soybean Exports are Leveling Off and the US is Losing Market Share to Brazil and Argentina Source: ERS and USDA Baseline, 2005
Exports Could Be Redirected To Biodiesel Market • If biodiesel demand continues to rise, and producers increase their usage of fats and oils, exports could be redirected towards the biodiesel market without having a huge effect on domestic food and feed prices.
Currently Imported Oils are Limited Source: ERS, USDA, 2005
Grow More Crops • Substitution, e.g., grow more soybeans and less wheat • Bring more land into production • Increase bushels per acre • Increase oil content per bushel • Introduce new plant varieties
Conclusions • There is enough domestic feedstocks to satisfy biodiesel demand in the short run. Exports could be redirected to the biodiesel industry to sustain growth. • It seems unlikely that the U.S. would ever import a significant amount of oilseed crops or biodiesel.
Conclusions We Can Expand Supply of Domestic Feedstocks • Some limited opportunities for crop substitution and increasing land use for biodiesel • Feedstock supply will increase as crop yields continue to rise • We will see small increases in oil yields for traditional crops • Perhaps are biggest gains will come from the introduction of new plant varieties
Conclusions • Biodiesel cannot completely replace petroleum diesel fuel, but it can “help” solve our energy problems. • Biodiesel is just one of many alternative energy sources that can help diversify and expand domestic energy supply. • The relative supply of biodiesel will increase significantly with increases in energy efficiency (e.g., diesel hybrids) and other technological advances.
Conclusions • In the President’s State of the Union Address, he outlined a plan to replace 75 % of our imports from the Middle East. Biodiesel and other alternative fuels can help meet this target. • In the short run reducing imports from our most unreliable trading partners would help avoid energy shortages in extreme price spikes. • In the long run, new technologies will significantly expand our domestic energy supply, e.g., cellulosic ethanol, Fischer-Tropsch diesel, and hydrogen.