Gevo tour promotes petroleum alternatives

Gevo Inc. hosted an educational tour Monday for stakeholders and policymakers to learn more about clean fuel projects in Minnesota.
Partnering with the Great Plains Institute, Gevo shared the message that biofuels are a lower-carbon alternative to petroleum-based transportation fuels.
“Minnesota is a leader in the ag and energy space and has an opportunity to create a clean fuel program that recognizes and rewards the immense carbon reduction capacity of agriculture,” said Lindsay Fitzgerald, vice president of Gevo’s governmental relations.
“Gevo’s guests represented the entire supply chain, field to the fuel tank, and we greatly appreciate the time and contributions from all participants. We look forward to collaborating to see a clean fuel policy in Minnesota.”
She said the tour at Gevo’s Luverne facility demonstrated commitment to reducing carbon and increasing agriculture sustainability while repowering the state.  
Meanwhile, producers are finding new ways to improve fuel efficiency while reducing the carbon footprint.
For example, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) dramatically reduces carbon intensity of air travel — up to 75 percent lower than that of conventional jet fuel.
Luverne Mayor Pat Baustian joined the tour Monday and said he learned a great deal about sustainable aviation fuels and the local plant’s role in reducing carbon footprints.
“It was very evident in today’s meeting that Gevo has a clear plan with their isobutanol/isooctane production and the low carbon footprint that they have with it,” he said.
“It was also very clear in what Gevo and their industry partners want to do with it in reducing carbon emissions in the airline fuel industry.”
Gevo leaders said that increasingly airlines are looking for ways to source lower-carbon fuels, and SAF plays an important role in meeting this goal.
Monday’s discussion following the tour focused on benefits and opportunities of biofuel production in Minnesota, as well as policy opportunities to support the further development of industry in the state.
Local legislators on the tour were encouraged to promote state policies such as Bioincentive and Future Fuels Act that support economic development and innovation in this sector.
Sen. Bill Weber, Luverne, toured with the group and said he was encouraged by the recent advances at the local plant.
“The production of hydrocarbons for conversion into jet fuel — or a variety of other products — is really the next generation of ethanol production and offers a great opportunity for plants like Gevo and the communities in which they are located,” he said.
However, he said he opposed renewable fuel mandates in developing the market.
“Any program must be based on incentives, not mandates,” he said. “Incentives will allow a program to develop and when it matures, be able to stand on its own. All mandates do is raise everyone’s costs and not achieve meaningful results.”
Baustian said that Monday’s event shows that lawmakers and industry leaders will need to work together to develop the SAF market.
The creation of industry and government long-term carbon reduction policies will be crucially important for this industry going forward,” Baustian said.
“Investors need these types of policies so that further long-term investment into these low carbon technologies and manufacturing of them will continue.”
He said Gevo’s Luverne plant will continue to play a big part in that process to manufacture Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) into the near future.
 
About Gevo Inc.
Gevo uses low-carbon renewable resource-based carbohydrates, such as industrial corn, to produce drop-in transportation fuels such as gasoline and jet fuel.
When burned, these fuels have potential to yield net-zero greenhouse gas emissions when measured across the full life cycle of the products.
Gevo is also in the advanced stage of developing renewable electricity and renewable natural gas for use in production processes, resulting in low-carbon fuels with substantially reduced carbon intensity.
Gevo has roughly $1.6 billion in financeable off-take agreements and more than $20 billion actively being discussed or negotiated.
In 2019 Delta Airlines entered into a partnership with Gevo in order to source millions of gallons of sustainable aviation fuel as part of its commitment to reduce emissions by 50 percent by 2050.