The month of December also set production and demand records. Ethanol production in December rose 5,000 b/d from the previous month to 280,000 b/d. Demand skyrocketed to 310,000 b/d, breaking the old record of 297,000 b/d.
Ethanol production in December topped 364 million gallons, equal to 280,000 barrels per day. Ethanol use climbed to 403 million gallons, equal to 310,000 barrels per day. Imports topped 32 million gallons, according to the group.
“These figures represent not only the tremendous growth our industry is experiencing, but also the future growth that will occur,” said RFA President Bob Dinneen. “Demand for ethanol will only continue to grow as refiners remove MTBE from the marketplace and more Americans switch to this clean burning, renewable fuel. The U.S. ethanol industry, with 2.1 billion gallons of capacity currently under construction, will continue to expand to meet this soaring demand.” Currently, 95 ethanol plants have a combined production capacity of more than 4.3 billion gallons a year. There are 34 ethanol plants and nine expansions under construction with a combined annual capacity of more than 2.1 billion gallons.
