The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) today expressed thanks to the Senate Committee on Finance and to Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Ranking Member Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) for proposing the "Energy Advancement and Investment Act of 2007." Among its many provisions, the legislation contains a first-of-its-kind tax credit for small-scale producers (60 million gallons or less annually) of biofuels from cellulosic biomass.
BIO President and CEO Jim Greenwood said, "Pioneering biofuels companies are right now beginning to deploy the technology to produce cellulosic ethanol, using biomass sources from every part of the country – everything from crop residues in the Midwest to paper mill waste in the Northeast.
BIO has long advocated a tax incentive such as that proposed today to help these producers overcome the increased risk associated with bringing cellulosic biofuels to the marketplace."
The legislation would create a new production credit specifically for biofuel producers who utilize cellulosic biomass, while at the same time extending existing ethanol incentives. The combined credits would reward pioneering small producers who bring the first 1 billion gallons of cellulosic ethanol to the marketplace.
Greenwood continued, "The proposed legislation is a good start, but more needs to be done. President Bush has set ambitious goals to reduce U.S. reliance on imported oil and greenhouse gas emissions through increased use of clean, renewable biofuels.
"To produce the volumes of cellulosic ethanol needed to achieve these goals, we must encourage construction of large-scale commercial facilities, producing 100 million gallons or more. Continued investment in research and development that includes construction of demonstration facilities also is necessary to improve technologies to produce biofuels."
