Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue announced the first round of grants on Thursday from a $100 million program for the installation of pumps and storage tanks to increase the sale of higher blends of biofuels, such as E15 or E85. Projects in 14 states, from California to Florida and New York, will be funded by the $22 million in grants, said Perdue during a tour of southern Minnesota and northern Iowa.
The USDA said the remaining $78 million in grants from the Higher Blends Infrastructure Incentive Program would be announced in coming weeks. The trade group Growth Energy said nearly $30 million would be awarded to its network of retailers. Another pro-ethanol group, the Renewable Fuels Association, said it had assisted retailers in winning $21 million in grants. The American Coalition for Ethanol said it, too, had helped applicants secure funds from the competitive grant program.
The initial round of grants were announced at a convenience store in Ankeny, Iowa, and at a truck stop in Albert Lea, Minnesota, said the USDA. Perdue also visited ethanol maker Golden Grain Energy, which is building the world’s largest grain bin, in Mason City, Iowa. According to the bin’s maker, Sukup Manufacturing Co., it will be 156 feet tall and 165 feet in diameter, wide enough to hold a Boeing 767. When complete, the bin will hold 2.2 million bushels of corn, tripling Golden Grain’s storage capacity, reported the Des Moines Register.
The USDA announced the $100 million grant program last May. The grants, of up to $5 million, cover up to 50 percent of costs “to increase significantly the sale and use of higher blends of ethanol and biodiesel by expanding the infrastructure for renewable fuels.” Some $86 million would be devoted to ethanol and $14 million to biodiesel.
The USDA web page for the Higher Blends Infrastructure Incentive Program is available here.