Download PDF

The United States Energy Information Administration (“EIA”) issued a report titled:

EIA Projects U.S. Biofuel Production to Slowly Increase Through 2050 (“Report”)

EIA’s projection is based on its publication Annual Energy Outlook 2020 (“AEO20”).

Biofuels are a renewable energy source derived from organic matter (“biomass”) or waste.

Examples of biofuel include ethanol and biodiesel.

Ethanol is a renewable fuel in which alcohol is used as a blending agent with gasoline to increase octane. Biodiesel is a liquid fuel produced from new and used vegetable oils and animal fats.

The EIA Report projects that biofuel production will grow slowly through 2050. Primary drivers of demand are described as economic and policy factors.

The scenarios EIA considered include current laws and regulations which project biofuels production at 18% higher than 2019 levels. An alternative scenario describes higher global crude oil prices with biofuels increasingly consumed as substitutes for petroleum products resulting in 55% growth in biofuel production in 2050.

The Report states that U.S. biofuels consumption totaled 1.09 million barrels per day, accounting for 7.3 % of total motor gasoline, distillate, and jet fuel consumption.

A copy of the Report can be downloaded here.