Looking Ahead To Ethanol Pipelines
4 Comments Published by gwen September 17th, 2008 in Energy, Politics and Government, Uncategorized.The role of energy in North Dakota’s future seems to be discussed by every person running for public office right now, and with good cause. It seems that almost every part of the energy industry–oil, coal, wind power, ethanol and biofuels have their own issues but still move forward.
Transmission or transportation of the energy product is as much an issue for ethanol producers as it is for oil companies drilling in the Bakken area or the wind farms scattered across the state. In this article, AP writer James McPherson looks at the problems of transporting ethanol in traditional pipelines.
From the article:
Justin Kringstad, director of the newly formed North Dakota Pipeline Authority, said his agency will support pipeline companies that consider moving ethanol from factories in North Dakota.
“It’s definitely something on our immediate radar,” Kringstad said. “We want to make sure ethanol flows as freely in pipelines as natural gas or crude.”
It’s worth a read.
The only reason people should push ethanol through their pipelines is as a cleaning solvent. As the article highlighted, it cleaned out a lot of impurities from the pipeline.
Until the federal subsidies on ethanol blended fuels are repealed, and it’s allowed to compete on its own merits, we have no business dumping piles of cash into trying to keep it viable. It’s inefficient and it’s got at least a partial role in price spikes for food (both for people and for livestock).
Clint F
BismarckMandanBlog.com
I’m beginning to wonder about it myself. My husband did some calculations showing we got significantly less gas mileage with the subsidized ethanol fuel, which costs us a dollar or two more each time we fill up.
But I’m not against ethanol. I do still believe it has a place, and probably a huge place in North Dakota’s future. There are just some bugs to be worked out.
It is a difficult situation we are in right now. We are bring forced, nearly, to resort to untested means of fuel. Hopefully some hard facts are used to make this decision. I want North Dakota to remain the wonderful place to live it currently is.
As I posted on bismarckmandanblog.com a while back, the government’s own figures demonstrate that there is much less thermodynamic energy potential in a gallon of E85 fuel than there is in gasoline. That means that, even running optimally on E85, you will have less power and therefore less mileage.
A friend ran a tank of E85 through his new flexfuel Suburban on a road trip. He barely had enough power to pass people, pulling a small trailer with musical instruments in it, and when it was all said and done he “saved” a dollar at the pump. That’s if you don’t factor in the fifty cent per gallon or so subsidy that ethanol enjoys, thanks to our wonderful politicians.
Ethanol is a loser. Period. I don’t care how good it is for North Dakota’s economic development…it’s a bad idea, and we don’t want to tie our national energy policy to it.