U.S. Grains & BioProducts Council (USGBC) Senior Manager of Global Ethanol Export Development Ankit Chandra (rightmost) and USGBC Manager of Global Ethanol Programs Emma Freebairn (fifth from right) recently traveled to Rotterdam, Netherlands to participate in a marine fuel workshop during ARACON 2026.U.S. Grains & BioProducts Council
Ankit Chandra, USGBC senior manager of global ethanol export development, and Emma Freebairn, manager of global ethanol programs, attended with Council members ADM and Growth Energy, the Council said in a release Thursday. The "Ethanol as a Marine Fuel" workshop covered lifecycle carbon performance, policy treatment, engine readiness, bunkering, or ship refueling, and commercial deployment in the European market. It also reviewed evidence on crop-based feedstocks, food and fuel, and efficiency gains in U.S. corn ethanol production.
Chandra said shipping companies want lower-emission fuels that can be used at scale without new supply chains or infrastructure.
"Ethanol is increasingly part of that conversation. It is already produced and traded globally, can be handled as a liquid fuel and is gaining attention as part of the broader alcohol-fuel pathway alongside methanol," Chandra said.
He said identifying the commercial and regulatory barriers to wider use of sustainable marine fuels could open new biofuel demand that U.S. producers can meet.
