EPA gives green light to Pacific Ethanol to use Edeniq’s technology

Edeniq, a US cellulosic and biorefining technology company, has announced that the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved Pacific Ethanol’s Stockton, California, plant using Edeniq’s Pathway Technology, allowing the facility to generate D3 cellulosic renewable identification numbers (RINs) for its cellulosic output under the renewable fuels standard (RFS).

“This approval is a landmark for the ethanol industry and our company,” said Brian Thome, President and CEO of Edeniq.

He added:  “This opens the door for low-cost production of cellulosic ethanol from corn kernel fiber in existing fermentation vessels to drive yields to 3 gallons per bushel. While we have long heard the story – ‘Cellulosic ethanol will be here in five to ten years,’ Edeniq’s Pathway Technology for profitably producing cellulosic ethanol is here today.

“A 120 million gallon per year corn ethanol plant can increase its revenue by up to $10 million or more through integration of Pathway, with very little investment and a less than one-year payback. This is a game-changer for the cellulosic ethanol industry, which has historically focused on investing in new plants.”

In a statement, Edeniq said that its technology is the “lowest-cost solution for producing cellulosic ethanol from corn kernel fiber utilising existing fermenters at corn ethanol plants”.

Second-gernation biofuel producer

Edeniq develops analytical methods to quantify cellulosic ethanol co-produced with conventional ethanol during fermentation, which is required to access regulatory value including D3 RINs, California Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) credits, and the Second Generation Biofuel Producer tax credit.

The Pathway Technology combination of cellulase enzyme and Edeniq’s Cellunator high-shear milling equipment produces up to 2.5% cellulosic ethanol, up to a 7% increase in overall ethanol yield due to yield enhancement from starch and cellulose, and up to a 30% increase in corn oil recovery.

Pacific Ethanol began producing cellulosic ethanol at its 60 million gallon per year Stockton, California plant in December 2015 using the Pathway Technology.

Neil Koehler, the company’s president and CEO, said: “The EPA-approved registration for generating cellulosic ethanol and D3 RINs is an important milestone in our strategy to be a leading producer of cellulosic ethanol. We expect to produce over one million gallons per year of cellulosic ethanol at our Stockton facility.

“With the high-value D3 RINs, the carbon credit under California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard, and the federal Second Generation Biofuel Producer tax credit, we expect that cellulosic ethanol production will materially contribute to the profitability of our Stockton facility. As we confirm and optimise our cellulosic ethanol production process, we will look toward expanding this to other Pacific Ethanol plants.”

“Our Pathway Technology offers a very attractive value proposition for every plant configuration,” added Cam Cast, COO of Edeniq. “Customer interest in our Pathway Technology is very strong right now, and market adoption of our technology in the US alone could add over 300 million gallons per year of cellulosic ethanol. We are excited to be working with ethanol plants on several new commercial trials in addition to previously announced licenses. Our team is inside plants on a weekly basis working side-by-side with our customers, and our pipeline continues to grow. We particularly want to thank the Pacific Ethanol Stockton plant for their partnership in commercializing the Pathway Technology.”

Edeniq has also announced the closing of a financing round to support an accelerated roll-out of the Pathway Technology.