Get a Look at our Intensity Conference Agenda

ACE's 2022 CONFERENCE FEATURES a range of topics.

AGENDA PDF CONFERENCE GUIDE
SPEAKER BIOS EVENT PAGE

Wednesday, August 10, 2022

2:00 pm – 6:30 pm               Conference Registration & Company Display Setup Open                

                                                    Capitol Ballroom Foyer

3:00 pm – 5:00 pm               Pre-Conference: E15 & Flex Fuel Retailer Workshop - Retailer Registration Here                    

                                                    Capitol Ballroom 4

5:30 pm – 6:30 pm               Welcome Reception

                                                    Capitol Ballroom Foyer                        

Thursday, August 11, 2022

8:00 am – 5:00 pm               Conference Registration

                                                    Capitol Ballroom Foyer                        

8:00 am                               Continental Breakfast         

                                                   Capitol Ballroom Foyer

Sponsored by:                       

8:30 am – 12:15 pm              General Session

 Capitol Ballroom 2

Welcome – Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts - More Details Here

Intensity:  Updates from ACE Leadership

                              • Dave Sovereign, Board President, ACE (representing Golden Grain Energy)
                              • Brian Jennings, CEO, American Coalition for Ethanol
                              • Ron Lamberty, CMO, American Coalition for Ethanol

10:15 am – 10:25 am            Refreshment Break

                                                   Capitol Ballroom Foyer

  Sponsored by:

Everything Counts: Farm-to-Biofuel Carbon Market Opportunities

                                                 Moderator: Brian Jennings, CEO, ACE

                              • Dr. David Clay, Professor Soil Science, South Dakota State University 
                              • Jonathon Lehman, Founder, Cultivating Conservation

ACE is working to validate the benefits farm-level practices have in reducing corn ethanol’s carbon footprint, enabling farmers and ethanol producers to benefit from clean fuel markets. Hear about this work and a first-of-its-kind project in South Dakota to illuminate the path forward for climate-smart farming practices in new state and federal clean fuel standard programs which will increase ethanol demand.

Flexing Forward: The Retailer Roundtable - More Details Here

Moderator: Ron Lamberty, CMO, American Coalition for Ethanol

                              • Randy Gard, COO, Bosselman Enterprises
                              • Jeff Wilkerson, Government Policy and Regulatory Affairs Manager, Pearson Fuels

With historically high gas prices and the push to net zero vehicles, fuel retailers offering higher ethanol blends are posting eye-popping low prices for lower carbon fuels, bringing in new customers and some of the best margins they’ve seen in years. This year’s  panel features two marketers selling and distributing E15 and E85 in Nebraska, Kansas and California, who recognized the price advantage ethanol delivers, and learned how RINs, LCFS credits, and state tax policy can save drivers a lot of money while giving ethanol blend marketers a huge competitive advantage - in some very different markets.

12:15 pm – 1:15 pm             Lunch

1:30 pm – 2:30 pm               Breakout Sessions Round I: (held concurrently)

 

LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT TRACK

Dodge Room

All Things HR: Ethanol Plant Labor Challenges & Ways to Overcome Them

                              • Donna Funk, Principal, Pinion (formerly KCoe Isom)
                              • Connie Lindstrom, Senior Biofuels Analyst, Christianson Benchmarking, LLC
                              • Ann Reis, CFO and Chief Accounting Officer, Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy

“We’re hiring!” Who isn’t’? This timely panel will provide insights into today’s hiring practices — what it takes to attract and retain solid team members — and an assessment of data gathered from ethanol plants across the country, as part of Christianson’s annual labor survey, to understand standard practices and discover how labor can impact financial opportunities. Hear industry experts and an HR professional explain on the labor challenges where they’ve found success in attracting and retaining a talented labor force.

TECHNOLOGY TRACK

Douglas Room

Corn Oil: Getting All the Liquid Gold from Your Plant  

Getting as much oil from your corn as possible favors your bottom line, especially with rising corn oil prices. Fluid Quip Technologies brings its experience in corn oil innovation to its newest DCO+ Technology, designed to work in any ethanol facility. Join the FQT team as they walk through this proprietary separation technology and demonstrate how plants can achieve record oil yields up to 1.4 pounds per bushel.

CARBON TRACK

Capitol Ballroom 4

Carbon Capture and R&D Tax Credits: Worth the Investment?

                              • Jim Donovan, Partner, Business Credits & Incentives, Eide Bailly LLP
                              • Mark Rogers, Principal, Business Credits & Incentives, Eide Bailly LLP
                              • Mel Schwarz, Director of Legislative Affairs, Eide Bailly LLP

Developers, investors and lenders stand to gain significant federal tax credits with the 45Q Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) and R&D tax credits. Organizations sometimes fail to claim R&D credits because of confusion around documentation, qualifying activities and expenditures, and how the credit can be used. Gain clarity around these topics to provide the foundation for identifying and claiming the R&D credits and lowering your company’s tax burden.

2:30 pm – 2:45 pm               Refreshment Break

Capitol Ballroom Foyer

Sponsored by:

2:45 pm – 3:45 pm               Breakout Sessions Round II: (held concurrently)

 

LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT TRACK

Dodge Room

Incorporate IT Security into Every Aspect of Your Business  

                              • Doug Davidson, Director of Information Technology Services, GBQ Partners, LLC

IT is integrated into every aspect of our daily lives; therefore, we are called to change how we think about IT security and how to make sure every aspect of the business is as secure as possible.  This includes such things as cloud hosting versus firewall; access rights; file maintenance, file storage and retention; back-up processes; the list goes on. Understand how to assess your IT security and gain ideas on how to set a path forward toward a safer tomorrow.

TECHNOLOGY TRACK

Douglas Room

Driving Value to Agriculture through Low Carbon Biorefinery Solutions

                              • Matt Durler, Vice President of Feed Development, ICM, Inc.

Reducing emissions is a cornerstone of any successful sustainability strategy that requires investment, innovation and commitment. Sitting at the intersection of fuel, feed and farming, bioethanol plants play an important role in optimizing the carbon footprint and driving solutions that sustain agriculture. ICM will discuss how bioethanol plants can help drive these initiatives and explore different low carbon strategies that can be implemented to increase efficiency, reduce natural gas usage, and reduce waste. Learn about beneficial products from low-carbon technologies including diversified feed options, which can be tailored to specific markets, and biochar, which can bring soil benefits to farmers through better nitrogen efficiency. 

CARBON TRACK

Capitol Ballroom 4

Cogeneration to Complement Your Carbon Reduction Strategy

                              • Bernie Hoffman, Vice President, P&E Solutions LLC
                              • Kevin Jensen, Power Generation Account Manager, Solar Turbines
                              • Kevin Slepicka, Vice President Heat Recover Boiler Sales, RENTECH Boiler Systems Inc.

Evolving clean fuel markets have created opportunities for ethanol plants to monetize their low carbon score. As the industry continues to drive down carbon scores, there are new and long-established technologies available to implement. Current market conditions create a perfect opportunity for ethanol plants to take advantage of proven combined heat and power (CHP) systems along with carbon capture and storage (CCS). When combined, these technologies have the potential to cut carbon scores in half. Attendees can expect to learn about the carbon benefits and direct energy savings possible through CHP and its key components like Heat Recovery Steam Generators and gas-fired turbines and generators. Utilizing ethanol plant data and modeling, this session will cover how a properly designed CHP system can work in concert with CCS to further the carbon benefits and lower the operating expenses associated with it.

3:45 pm – 4:00 pm               Refreshment Break 

                                                     Capitol Ballroom Foyer

           

4:00 pm – 5:00 pm               Breakout Sessions Round III: (held concurrently)

 

LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT TRACK

Dodge Room

Board Training & Planning: What has Changed & What Needs To

This session will provide insight into board of director training and planning of the past and a vision for the future. Learn how the process, timing and content should change as the industry evolves, companies mature, and boards potentially face significant turnover.

TECHNOLOGY TRACK

Douglas Room

Producer/Vendor Collaboration Leads to Evaporator System Optimization

A conversation between Husker Ag and SUEZ regarding thin stillage evaporator performance led to a collaboration that has improved Husker Ag’s evaporator operation. Since implementing a deposit control additive solution, the plant has increased reliability and productivity, reduced energy requirements, and improved health and safety, allowing the plant to focus on other bottlenecks to increase production. This interactive session will provide key learnings from this case study of a successful producer/vendor collaboration and a conversation around best practices from partnerships that have improved producer operations. 

CARBON TRACK

Capitol Ballroom 4

Carbon Scoring: The Benefits Outweigh the Costs

Moderator: Brian Jennings, CEO, American Coalition for Ethanol

                              • Ron Alverson, Board Member, ACE (representing Dakota Ethanol)
                              • John Christianson, Principal, Christianson PLLP

 As it’s becoming increasingly important for ethanol producers and farmers to calculate the upside potential of investing in practices, processes, products and technologies to reduce carbon intensity, ACE launched a Corn Ethanol Carbon Intensity Calculator for producers to understand the factors that contribute to their score. The calculator demonstrates it’s possible to reach net-zero and even net-negative carbon. Combined with an overview of the calculator tool to demystify CI, Christianson experts will help attendees understand California’s LCFS and Carbon Capture and Sequestration certification and verification process, including reporting requirements, updating your CI scores, and farm GHG emission reporting and challenges. This panel will reveal how you can benefit from the current and emerging carbon economy.

5:00 pm – 6:30 pm               Networking Reception

                                      Capitol Ballroom Foyer

                                  Sponsored by:   

Friday, August 12, 2022

8:00 am – 11:00 am             Conference Registration

                                                      Capitol Ballroom Foyer

8:00 am – 8:30 am               Continental Breakfast

                                                     Capitol Ballroom Foyer

8:30 am – Noon                  General Session

                                                     Capitol Ballroom 2

Ethanol’s Evolution: New Uses & Markets

Moderator: Ron Lamberty, CMO, American Coalition for Ethanol

While there is much room for ethanol growth in the light-duty vehicle market, several promising new markets are emerging for ethanol producers. Hear about opportunities for ethanol in the sustainable aviation fuel, hydrogen and heavy-duty transportation sectors.  

Keynote: The Role for Biofuels in Forthcoming EPA Actions - More Details Here

                              • Rod Snyder, Senior Advisor for Agriculture, EPA

EPA’s Agricultural Advisor will provide updates on federal ethanol policy, including year-round E15, biofuels lifecycle modeling, and the future of the Renewable Fuels Standard.

10:00 am – 10:25 am          Refreshment Break

                                                     Capitol Ballroom Foyer

Sponsored by: 

Expanding Ethanol Use Around the World - More Details Here

Developing export markets and supportive trade and clean fuel policies around the world are critically important to growing demand for biofuels. Hear from the U.S. Grains Council head on opportunities and challenges to increase ethanol and coproduct markets globally and how they’ve shifted over the past few years. 

Capturing Carbon: CCS Pathways to Help Ethanol Achieve Net-Zero and Net-Negative Carbon Emissions

Moderator: Ron Alverson, Board Member, Dakota Ethanol, American Coalition for Ethanol

                              • Jim Pirolli, Summit Carbon Solutions
                              • Scott Rennie, CEO, Vault 44.01

Ethanol is the only clean energy transportation fuel that can achieve both net-zero and net-negative carbon emissions. Hear from speakers who are working on carbon sequestration strategies that will achieve incredible GHG reductions and provide significant return on investment for low carbon producers.

Noon                                 Adjourn & Company Display Takedown 

 

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