Breakout Session III
International Markets for the U.S. Biofuels Industry
Henry Steingass
Henry Steingass serves as Regional Director for Asia at the U.S. Trade and Development Agency, where he focuses on U.S. trade and development cooperation and innovative public-private partnerships in Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries, China and Mongolia, as well as regional initiatives through the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum. Since assuming the Asia portfolio in 2004, he has concentrated USTDA investment in the region in aviation modernization, transportation safety and security, clean energy development, e-government and e-commerce initiatives, customs modernization, and emergency response capabilities. In the Biotechnology and Biofuels arenas, Mr. Steingass has led the agency’s project efforts in ag biotech regulatory cooperation in China as well as biofuels development in Indonesia. In Fall 2007, he assumed the South Asia portfolio.
From 2000 to 2004, Mr. Steingass served at USTDA as Regional Director for Africa and the Middle East. In that capacity, he oversaw the reopening of the agency’s operations in Nigeria and the launch of a USTDA Africa regional office in Johannesburg. He also developed a portfolio of agency-supported activities centered on U.S. foreign policy priorities, including transportation security and trade capacity.
Mr. Steingass brought over 20 years of international experience in energy and other infrastructure sectors to USTDA. At K&M Engineering and Consulting of Washington, D.C., he led project advisory services for the implementation of “greenfield” independent power projects in Vietnam, Korea, Laos, Tunisia and Côte d’Ivoire, as well as management consulting teams for public utility restructuring and privatization assignments. He also served as an Energy Advisor in the Asia Bureau at the U.S. Agency for International Development and at the Tennessee Valley Authority, working with its international renewable energy and environment programs.
He holds a Masters of Public Administration from Harvard University, and a Bachelor of Arts from Cornell University.
Michael Howard
Michael Howard is the Midwest Regional Director for the Business Development Division of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank), a full faith and credit U.S. government agency. Ex-Im Bank’s mission is to promote exports of U. S. goods and services through a variety of programs including an Export Credit Insurance program, a Loan and Guarantee program and a Working Capital program.
Mr. Howard holds a B.S. in Industrial Management from Georgia Institute Technology. He has served on many advisory councils and committees on international financing for small businesses and is one of the authors of the Florida Export Finance Corporation.
Tom Rial
Tom Rial is a Des Moines-based business development, marketing and export trade consultant, assisting start-up and producer-owned agribusiness companies, new-to-export clients and seasoned international firms. Presently, Midwest AgriTrade LP is under federal contract by the U.S. Commercial Service to assist the Des Moines U.S. Export Assistance Center in providing Iowa companies export counseling and assistance. In that capacity, Tom is working with other Midwest Export Assistant Centers to identify overseas opportunities for their clients in the global biofuels sector.
In previous positions, Tom served as Director of the Iowa Export Assistance Center at the Greater Des Moines Partnership providing export trade assistance to Iowa agribusiness firms, worked as Marketing Director for the Iowa Soybean Promotion Board, and as an International Transportation and Marketing Specialist for USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service.
Tom currently serves on the Board’s of the Iowa District Export Council, Iowa Lottery Board Authority, and the Wallace House Foundation. Tom has also served as Director of the Iowa Foreign Trade Zone Corporation, USDA’s Containerized Grain Export Advisory Council, and Governor Tom Vilsack’s Iowa Food Policy Council. Tom was selected to participate in the 2002 Europe an Union Visitor’s Program, and was a 2003 Asia Foundation Freeman Fellow. Tom is a graduate of the University of Northern Iowa and earned Master’s Degrees in international affairs and international political economy from Marquette University and The George Washington University, respectively.
Tom is a native of rural Iowa and currently resides in Des Moines with his wife Kymberley and their four children.
Dan Anderson
Dan Anderson has been involved in the design and implementation of systems for oilseed processing since 1978. From 1978 to 1980, Anderson was plant engineer for a soybean crushing facility in Sheldon Iowa where he participated in plant upgrades and facilities improvement operations. From 1978-1992, he was Manager of Engineering, R&D and Quality Control for a major US operation in based in Quincy, Illinois with three solvent extraction plants, two multi-stock refineries and one shortening and bottling operation. Among multiple plant acquisition and capital improvement projects, he oversaw construction of what was then the largest grass roots edible oil refinery in the United States. This facility included two independent caustic refining lines, edible lecithin processing, bleaching plants, semi and continuous deodorizers, fractionation, hydrogenation and interesterification operations.
Since that time, Anderson has been with Crown Iron Works Co. starting first with their Wurster and Sanger oleochemicals and refining product lines. With integration of this business into Crown’s main product line, Anderson became the Director of Asian Operations, where he currently overseas the companies’ Asian businesses.
Teresa McKeivier
Teresa McKeivier is the Senior Biodiesel Analyst with USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), Office of Global Analysis, Biofuels. Ms. McKeiviers’ primary responsibilities include strengthening the statistical foundation for analysis of international biofuel production and feedstock usage and leading and supporting USDA representation on international biofuels issues. Ms. McKeivier’s other duties include coordinating information exchange with overseas FAS offices in order to obtain market intelligence on the biofuel situation and outlook in foreign countries. In the last year, Ms. McKeivier traveled to Belgium, Germany, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, developing expertise in world biofuel markets. She has been employed with FAS since 2003 and previously served as a commodity analyst covering various agricultural commodities.
Ms. McKeivier’s public service extends over 10 years. She has served in various capacities in several U.S. Government agencies, including the International Trade Commission and the Federal Maritime Commission. Her previous experience covers a range of issues including international trade, agricultural economics and maritime issues. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the University of Akron (Ohio) in 1994 followed by a Master of Arts degree in Economics in 1996.