Woodland Biofuels to benefit from new venture deal

A venture deal has been completed between the Mars Cleantech Fund and Woodland Biofuels as the producer closes in on being North America’s lowest-cost ethanol provider.

Woodland Biofuels makes cellulosic ethanol from woodchips and other agricultural biomass into fuel at its newly opened demonstration plant in Ontario.

‘This fund seeks technologies with the potential to revolutionise the energy sector,’ the co-managing director of Mars, Tom Rand, was quoted as saying. ‘Woodland is on track to become the first company to profitably make renewable fuels from non-food sources without requiring any form of subsidy. That's the kind of game-changer we target.’

Rand also notes that liquid fuels - gasoline, diesel and jet fuel - are the most difficult components of the fossil fuel infrastructure to replace with renewables.

‘First-generation fuels from food are a non-starter - they can't scale up,’ he adds. ‘There were a few early, high-profile failures in cellulosic fuels, which made investors flee the sector. But if you do your homework, it's clear not all second-generation technologies are equal. With Woodland, we believe we've found a technology that can deliver on the promise of renewable fuel.’