Jan 12, 2009 10:41 AM

The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) has reaffirmed the U.S. biodiesel industry’s ability to meet America’s renewable fuels goals. The existing Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS-1) program establishes minimum targets for use of renewable fuels in the marketplace. For 2009, 10.5 billion gallons of renewable fuel must be entered into commerce.

In response to skepticism that there might be a shortage of renewable fuel available to meet the 2009 requirement, the NBB said it is confident that the U.S. biodiesel industry is fully capable of meeting any RFS shortfalls not filled by the domestic ethanol industry.

"The U.S. biodiesel industry’s contribution to the nation’s fuel supply will help ensure that the RFS targets for 2009 will be met," said Manning Feraci, NBB’s vice president of federal affairs. "In 2008 alone, the U.S. biodiesel industry produced nearly 700 million gallons of biodiesel, which equates to 1.05 billion ethanol equivalent gallons for purposes of the RFS."

Currently, there are 176 plants in operation with the capacity to produce more than 2.61 billion gallons of biodiesel. In 2008, the U.S. biodiesel industry supported nearly 52,000 jobs in all sectors of the economy. This added $4.287 billion to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP); displaced 38.1 million barrels of petroleum; generated $866.2 million in tax revenue for federal, state, and local governments; and reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 11.28 tons, the equivalent of removing 980,000 vehicles from U.S. roads.

Additional information about biodiesel is available online at www.biodiesel.org.