News

Japanese car giant Nissan Motor Co. is researching and developing what it calls a solid oxide fuel-cell (SOFC)-powered system that runs on bio-ethanol electric power. The new system – a world first for automotive use – features an e-Bio Fuel-Cell with an SOFC power generator. The e-Bio Fuel Cell generates electricity through the SOFC (power generator) using bio-ethanol stored in the…
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Struggling Spanish renewable energy company Abengoa has received $350 million (€312m) worth of bids for its four ethanol plants in the US Midwest. Abengoa is seeking to get rid of its four plants – located in Mt. Vernon, Indiana; Madison, Illinois; and Ravenna and York, Nebraska – as part of its global restructuring due to the company’s multibillion-dollar debt. According…
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A team of three Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT-D) students have come up with a prototype called FAME One to convert waste cooking oil into biodiesel. The invention, which outwardly resembles a washing machine, is not only eco-friendly but also affordable, which open doors for its use in rural setups to convert oil seeds into diesel. “We read somewhere that India generates the…
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Greentech Biofuels, an Irish firm specialising in green energy solutions, has teamed up with Saint Etienne Metropole and Ondaine Agro in order to bring biofuel-powered floodlights to one of the stadiums hosting Euro 2016. The three organisations will join forces to produce large amounts of biodiesel, which will be used to keep the floodlights at Stade Geoffroy Guichard lit throughout the…
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Scientists from ten institutions worldwide are challenging the notion that growing bioenergy crops hinders food production, which they see as harmful to new projects Traditionally in the “food v. fuel” debate, bioenergy crops have been blamed for food shortages as the land used for growing them could have been instead harnessed for food production. But a new report, titled Reconciling…
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In Brazil, 646.6 million litres of biodiesel have been contracted under the Brazilian Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas, and Biofuels’ (ANP) 49th biodiesel auction. ANP also reports that the entire volume carries the Social Fuel Stamp, a certificate part of Brazil’s National Programme of Biodiesel Production and Use, that provides tax incentives to biodiesel producers provided they…
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Finnish fuel producer Neste is set to start a trial project to turn used cooking oil (UCO) into biodiesel at its biorefinery in Finland. The trial, to be held at the company’s Kilpilahti refinery in Porvoo and expected to last until the end of 2017, will examine how UCO can be most effectively used as a biofuel feedstock. Neste aims to process 20,000 tonnes of the material annually –…
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More countries around the world are investing in renewable energy and last year spent more than green sources than on new coal and gas-fired power plants, according to a new report. The report is entitled Renewables 2016 Global Status and was published by REN 21, an international body backed by the UN. An estimated 147 gigawatts (GW) of new renewable power generation was added globally in…
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Abengoa Bioenergy has stopped operations at its bioethanol plant in Lacq, France. An Abengoa spokeswoman gave a statement to Biofuels International. However, the firm did not disclose what the incident was or the cause of the incident. The statement said: “An incident occurred in one of the fermenters during a scheduled shutdown of the plant for maintenance.  “There were no…
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The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and US Department of Justice (DOJ) have settled an environmental enforcement case with Newport Biodiesel, resulting in reduced air emissions and improved safety controls at the company’s biodiesel manufacturing plant in Newport, Rhode Island. EPA and DOJ alleged that Newport Biodiesel violated various Clean Air Act (CAA) requirements for…
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Sunbird Bioenergy Africa, a biofuels producer which develops projects in Sub-Saharan Africa, is expected to sign an Investment Promotional and Protection Agreement (IPPA) on or around 30 June, 2016, in order to push ahead with its Zambian bioethanol project. An IPPA is an international agreement between governments for the promotion and protection of investments made by investors of one…
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Rail is the primary mode of transport used to transport US biofuels, according to new data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). Although pipelines, tankers, and barges are widely used to transport liquid fuels to, from, and within the US, several types of liquid fuels, including crude oil, ethanol, and biodiesel, are transported by rail in large volumes. EIA recently expanded its…
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