News

Researchers from the University of Minnesota are piloting a new plant which can convert by-products of wastewater treatment into biodiesel. A white, muddy substance produced during wastewater treatment, scum presents a significant waste disposal challenge. In general it is either sent to anaerobic digestion facilities to produce biogas, or disposed of in landfill. The new process developed by…
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A subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell, Shell International Exploration and Production B.V., has reached an agreement with SBI Bioenergy giving Shell exclusive development and licensing rights for SBI’s biofuel technology. Edmonton, Canada based SBI has a patented process that can convert a wide range of waste oils, greases and sustainable vegetable oils into lower carbon drop-ins for diesel,…
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Finnish firm Suomen Bioetanoli is looking for substantial new funding for two new biofuels plants, following the withdrawal of a major investor on the project. According to yle.fi, a €200 million deal with Chinese investor fell through because the Chinese financier was unable to together the funding for the project. The result is a large funding hole in the planned project to construct…
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Sunbird Bioenergy Africa has commenced work on a cassava out-grower programme to provide sustainable feedstock for a bioenergy project expected to eventually produce 120 million litres per year of bioethanol for Zambia’s ethanol-fuel blending programme. The move came soon after Sunbird presented at the Luapula Expo, which was organised to promote the investment potential of the region.…
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Researchers in Pennsylvania have developed a new method for converting potato waste into ethanol, a process they claim could reduce production costs for biofuels in the future and provide extra value for chip makers. The team from the Penn State University’s College of Agricultural Sciences used potato mash made from the peelings and potato residuals from a Pennsylvania food-processor to…
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A Boeing 747 could fly for ten hours on biojet fuel produced on 54 acres of specially engineered sugarcane, according to research from the University of Illinois. The same aircraft would burn one gallon of conventional jet fuel each second. Plants Engineered to Replace Oil in Sugarcane and Sweet Sorghum (PETROSS), funded by the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA-E), has developed sugarcane…
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The price of oil has fallen back to around $58.59 a barrel after hitting a two-year high on 26 September, 2017, according to the BBC. Rising demand and geopolitical worries had fuelled the increase, along with indications that production cuts by Opec (Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) members are starting to bite. Brent rose about 4% to just short of $60 (€51), its…
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A general ban on palm oil in biofuels in Europe punishes the wrong producers while having little impact on reducing deforestation, according to Jaboury Ghazoul, a professor of ecosystem management at ETH Zurich. He claims in an article published by the university that banning palm oil actually blocks good practice. In April 2017, the European Parliament voted to ban the use of palm oil in…
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Carl Icahn has been subpoenaed by the US Justice Department in relation to his efforts to overhaul the US biofuels programme while an unpaid advisor to President Trump, according to Reuters. A securities filling from Icahn’s company, Icahn Enterprises, revealed the court summons, Reuters reports. Earlier this year, a great deal of controversy was caused by Icahn’s role as both a…
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Biodiesel producers in Indonesia are looking for new export markets, according to Indonesia Investment. In early November, the US Commerce Department set anti-subsidy rates in the range of 34.45-64.73% for palm oil-based biodiesel imports from Indonesia. This final ruling was slightly lighter compared with the preliminary 41.06-68.28% range that was set in August 2017. Indonesian stakeholders are…
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Researchers have carried out systematic analysis of the latest scientific evidence on indirect land use change (ILUC) greenhouse gas emissions associated with the production of biofuels and bioliquids. Experts from the Biomass Department of CENER (National Renewable Energy Centre of Spain) have coordinated the project, which was initiated by the European Commission Directorate-General for…
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The BioAg Alliance, Monsanto’s and Novozymes’ collaboration to improve crop harvests through products containing naturally-occurring microbes, today announced results from its 2016 field trial program and shared an updated research pipeline. Yield increases among top microbial strains averaged over 3 bushels per acre for corn and over 2 bushels per acre for soy. Among the…
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The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has denied a request from oil refiners to waive some of their advanced biofuels use requirements from 2016. The denial was published on Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) on website. The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) programme was signed into law in 2005 and designed to boost a renewable fuel industry annually. It requires oil companies to use…
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US crude oil production is set to increase from an average of 8.9 million barrels per day (b/d) in 2016 to an average of 9.3 million b/d in 2018, primarily as a result of gains in the major US tight oil-producing states, according to US Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) January Short-Term Energy Outlook. Texas, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and New Mexico are the US tight…
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