By USGC staff
Last month, the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) hosted Global Ethanol Summit (GES) in Washington, D.C. where more than 350 participants had the opportunity to learn about bioethanol’s production and hear examples of various countries’ biofuel policies and everyday consumer uses.
GES is an education and trade forum that sought to elevate bioethanol’s international visibility and ongoing successful initiatives as a viable decarbonization solution within the transportation sector. Attendees this year included ministerial-level officials and industry leaders, bioethanol producers and refiners from more than 40 countries.
In addition to its four general sessions, GES also featured concurrent panels focused on different aspects of bioethanol uses and best practices, including sessions on new use applications, environmental and human health benefits and infrastructure and compatibility. This allowed the diverse group of attendees to choose the information that best suited their individual needs and interests.
“Having multiple options for our participants was a great way to showcase the many use applications of bioethanol and highlight the various best practices being utilized around the world related to infrastructure and blending capabilities, as well as off-road applications such as biobased chemicals and sustainable aviation fuel,” said Mackenzie Boubin, USGC director of global ethanol export development.
Aside from the various informational sessions at GES, the Council also arranged industry side meetings for attendees during the event. This was highly effective in building relationships between individuals and groups along the entire bioethanol value chain.
The event concluded with a series of memorandum of understanding (MOU) signings between the Council and representatives from Ghana, Honduras and Mexico. MOUs are non-binding agreements signifying an intention for the parties to collaborate in the future, paving the way for increased bioethanol blending in other regions and higher U.S. exports.
Attendees then split into 11 groups and traveled across the country to tour U.S. bioethanol production, transportation and retail sale facilities as well as attend meetings with major bioethanol suppliers to better understand each other’s needs.
These post-teams are ideal for leaders in countries that are implementing bioethanol into gasoline or increasing their existing blending rate because they can ask direct questions to producers and consumers who can offer answers about bioethanol.
“Not only were participants able to network with other industry leaders and learn about the latest in bioethanol development and uses at GES, but they were also able to physically see and touch all aspects of the bioethanol value chain on these post-tours,” Boubin said. “The post-tours are completely unique to GES and attendees return to their home countries energized and exposed to new techniques that can be implemented within their respective regions.”
