Fri Feb 26, 2010 8:49pm GMT
WASHINGTON, Feb 26 (Reuters) - U.S. daily ethanol output rose in December for the third month in a row as distillers took advantage of low prices for corn and natural gas, the Energy Information Administration said.
Distillers made 787,870 barrels per day of the alternative motor fuel in December, the last month for which data was available. That was up from 786,400 barrels per day in November, and 740,000 bpd in October.
"Ethanol makers are making money again," said Matt Hartwig a spokesman for the Renewable Fuels Association, an ethanol industry group. "It's become more economical for producers to make ethanol as corn prices fall."
Most U.S. ethanol is made out of corn, while distillers use natural gas to fire their plants.
Motor fuel blenders and refiners mixed about 718,838 bpd of ethanol into gasoline in December, up from 695,900 bpd in November and 703,258 bpd in October
U.S. mandates call for increasing amounts of ethanol to be blended into gasoline to help reduce foreign oil demand. The mandate for ethanol made from corn and other grains hits a maximum of 15 billion gallons a year by 2015. (Reporting by Timothy Gardner; editing by Jim Marshall)
Source: http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKN2611998320100226
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