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FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NATIONAL CORN GROWERS ASSOCIATION
Rhondalee Dean-Royce, NCGA, 202-628-7001
NCGA Responds
to Exxon Chair’s
Misconceptions on Net Energy Balance of Ethanol
WASHINGTON (June 11, 2004) -- The National Corn Growers Association
(NCGA) yesterday sent a letter to Exxon Mobil Corporation Chairman
and CEO Lee Raymond dispelling several inaccuracies he made during
a speech concerning U.S. dependence on foreign oil.
In his June 7 speech at
the Woodrow Wilson International Center, Raymond said corn-based
ethanol is “neither an economic or energy-efficient
choice, as it can require more energy to produce than it generates
in the end.” NCGA President Dee Vaughan said a wealth of information
exists to rebut Raymond’s statement, specifically pointing to
the preliminary results of new U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
study by economist Hosein Shapouri. The study, “The 2001 Net
Energy Balance of Corn-Ethanol,” shows that ethanol generates
67 percent more energy than it takes to produce.
“Shapouri’s research proves ethanol undoubtedly has a
positive energy balance, even before subtracting the energy allocated
to co-products,” Vaughan said.
The letter also addresses
Raymond’s mistaken assertion that
corn grown for ethanol takes away land that could be used for food
and forests. Shapouri’s study points out that corn yields will
continue to increase, thereby increasing not only the net energy value
of ethanol production but also increasing the production efficiency
of the land.
Vaughan pointed out that
the U.S. Department of Energy estimates the United States will import
as much as 68 percent of its oil demand by
2010. Domestically produced ethanol can help to expand our nation’s
fuel supply, he said. “The increased use of ethanol in our nation’s
fuel supply is not the singular answer for U.S. dependence on foreign
oil, but ethanol is already playing an important role in the country’s
overall energy policy,” he said. “And ethanol will play
an integral part in finding a long-term energy security solution.”
Vaughan concluded by calling
on energy producers to work together in establishing a solution to
the mounting U.S. energy crisis. “Ethanol
provides more than 200,000 U.S. jobs annually, provides benefits to
our environment by reducing pollution, and plays an integral role in
contributing to a long-term solution to our nation’s energy security,” he
said. “During a time when our nation needs to expand all sources
of domestic energy, we should come together and have a serious discussion
based on facts, not misconceptions.”
The letter can be viewed in its entirety at www.ncga.com.
The National
Corn Growers Association mission is to create and increase opportunities
for corn growers in a changing world and to enhance corn’s
profitability and usage. NCGA represents more than 33,000 members,
25 affiliated state corn grower organizations and hundreds of thousands
of growers who contribute to state checkoff programs.
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