A coalition of renewable fuel and agricultural trade organisations in the US has filed a petition with the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, challenging the process by which the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) exempted certain small refineries from Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) exemptions for 2018. In contrast to previous years, the EPA’s... [Read More]

Renewable diesel producer Neste has signed a long-term wind power agreement with clean energy company Fortum, to power two of its production sites in Finland with wind energy. Neste will purchase around 70% of total production at the Kalax wind farm, which is currently under construction in Närpes, Ostrobothnia in Finland, for a contract period of 12 years. Total... [Read More]

The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) has opened its new West Coast office, to be led by California Air Resources Board (CARB) division chief Floyd Vergara, in the US state of California. The expansion will strengthen the association’s presence on the US West Coast, where climate programmes are an important market driver for low-carbon fuels such as biodiesel and renewable... [Read More]

Air Liquide has partnered with ArcelorMittal in an industrial-scale demonstration plant to capture carbon gas from the steelmaking process and recycle it into advanced bioethanol. As part of the project, Air Liquide Engineering & Construction will provide a technology solution that purifies the offgas from the blast furnace used in the manufacture of steel. These... [Read More]

Dredging services provider Boskalis and biofuels producer GoodFuels have progressed with their ‘Boskalis on Bio’ programme for the testing of sustainable bio-fuel oil. Following successful tests using drop-in blends of light biofuel and marine gas oil, Boskalis’ Willem van Oranje will become the world’s first dredging vessel to operate on 100% bio-fuel oil.... [Read More]

Scientists at the University of Manchester in the UK have made a breakthrough in the production of biofuels, using synthetic biology to make the next generation of bio-based jet fuels from seawater. The researchers, who are led by Professor Nigel Scrutton, director of the Manchester Institute (MIB) and supported by US-based international maritime research agency Office... [Read More]

The East Bay Clean Cities Coalition in California, US has awarded renewable diesel producer Neste its 2019 Clean Air Champion Award. According to Richard Battersby, director and chairman of the coalition, the award recognises Neste’s “exemplary work with renewable fuels and focus on sustainability as a core part of your mission and operations." The company supplies... [Read More]

Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory – Berkeley Lab – have successfully created six blends by combining municipal solid waste (MSW) with biomass. MSW is rubbish that is produced every day around the world in significant volumes. Using an ionic liquid-based process, the scientists have converted the blends into methyl ketones, which are chemical compounds... [Read More]

Greenfield Global, the largest producer of ethanol in Canada, has taken steps to expand production at its Varennes biorefinery following the introduction of draft regulations on the minimum renewable fuel volumes in the province of Quebec. Welcoming the Government of Quebec’s draft regulations on the minimum volume of renewable fuel to be blended in gasoline and diesel,... [Read More]

Waste-to-biofuels and chemicals producer Enerkem has announced the closing of a CAD$50 million (€34.2 million) equity investment from Suncor Energy. Canadian energy company Suncor initiated its investment in Enerkem in April this year, as part of a CAD$76.3 million (€52.2 million) equity financing alongside Enerkem’s existing shareholders. With this new investment,... [Read More]

Growth Energy, the largest ethanol trade association in the US, has announced the election of Dan Sanders as chairman of the board of directors. Sanders is vice-president of Front Range Energy, which operates a 48 million gallon per year ethanol facility in Windsor, Colorado in the US. Front Range Energy joined Growth Energy in 2008, when it was founded. "I’m honoured... [Read More]

ExxonMobil has recently signed agreements with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) locations in Madras and Bombay to expand its portfolio of research collaboration with India’s universities, with research to focus on biofuels, gas conversion and emissions reduction in the industrial sector. The five-year agreements between ExxonMobil and the Indian university... [Read More]

UK airline British Airways will become the first in the country to offset carbon emissions on all flights within the UK. From January 2020, all customers travelling within the UK on flights operated by British Airways will have carbon emissions offset by the airline and invested in carbon reduction projects around the world. These projects include renewable energy,... [Read More]

By Raj Shah, David Forester, Philip Iaccarino and Kareem Mehdi Bioenergy and biofuels are of increasing public and private interest as the world stands at a crossroads of rising energy demand and concerns over climate change. Biofuels are under an ever-brightening spotlight and touted as an ostensibly “cleaner” alternative to fossil fuels. However, in order to glean... [Read More]

Renewable fuel producer Neste has said that Neste MY Renewable Diesel is now available in all Baltic countries, including Estonia, as of October 2019. During the initial phase, private car owners and heavy-duty vehicle drivers can refuel with renewable diesel at one station in Tallinn, Kadaka tee 60, Tallinn. With this expansion into Estonia, the fuel is now available... [Read More]

Transport solutions provider Scania has rolled out a selection of vehicles, engines and solutions for ramps and runways that are fuelled with biofuels, or are hybrid. Airport operators are now able to choose solutions based on alternative fuels and hybrids from Scania’s modular range to reduce their carbon footprint. “Catering trucks and crash tenders may have... [Read More]