News

Algae.Tec, an algae production company, has received approval for its demonstration facility in Shoalhaven, New South Wales, Australia. The facility was approved under the Shoalhaven City Council Environment Planning and Assessment Act and the plant will be used to capture carbon dioxide waste from power stations and manufacturing facilities, feeding the pollution into the algae growth…
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Zimbabwean ethanol producer Green Fuel was forced to stop production at the beginning of last week because it has reached its storage capacity and was unable to offload the product until it received a trading licence from the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority. However, Green Fuel spokesperson Lilian Muungani said today that they had put the plant back online on Thursday morning. ‘Green Fuel…
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Gruppo Mossi and Ghisolfi (M&G), the Italian company behind the construction of the world’s first industrial second generation ethanol producing facility, has created a joint venture with TPG Capital and TPG Biotech to license the company’s Proesa technology, called Beta Renewables. As part of a €250 million investment into Beta Renewables, the technology will be used in the…
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In Italy, production capacity is predicted to drop by 18% as growing quantities of cheap imports continue to impact the country's output. By the end of this year, production is expected to reach 600,000 tonnes, with producers importing palm oil and rapeseed being hit the hardest. Cheap imports are expected to account for around 70% of Italy's domestic demand this year. Today, Italy is mandated to…
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In a new collaboration, energy producer Solena and Scandinavian Airlines System International (SAS) are to develop a bio-jet fuel project at Stockholm's Arlanda Airport. The project will handle biomass such as MSW. These waste materials is will be gasified, with the resulting syngas being made into renewable aviation fuel. Following the completion of this project, the partners hope to establish…
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Simon Storage has installed an ethanol blending system for Mabanaft at the new biofuels blending facility at Simon’s Immingham West Terminal. Simon says its facility has been built as a response to the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation (RTFO) programme which means more suppliers will be distributing fuels that are made up of a percentage of renewables. Simon and Mabanaft have built an…
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In China, steel producer Shougang Group and its New Zealand-based partner Shougang TangMing are looking to reduce their carbon footprint through the installation of clean energy technology at their steel mills across the world. Under a joint venture agreement with LanzaTech, Beijing-headquartered Shougang will construct a demo-scale plant at one of its steel mills, before this is quickly scaled…
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In China, Empire Oil Refineries has signed a letter of intent (LOI) to acquire Promethean Biofuels, as a wholly owned subsidiary of the company. 'We are pleased with the execution of the LOI between Empire and Promethean as it fits into our strategic plan to acquire assets in the biofuel clean energy space,' says Arshad Shah, president and CEO of Empire Oil Refineries. 'We feel that the addition…
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FuturaGene, a company dedicated to enhancing the yield and sustainability of woody crops for biofuels and biopower, and Guangxi Academy of Sciences (GXAS) have entered into a development agreement. Under the agreement, FuturaGene and GXAS, which is primarily focussed on bioenergy research and the development of non-food crops, will develop and optimise second generation biofuel production from…
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A Boeing 757 flew from Birmingham Airport, UK to Lanzarote on 6 October, on a 50/50 blend of bio-jet fuel derived from cooking oil and conventional jet fuel. The one-off Thomson Airways flight took off at 2.25pm. Two hundred and thirty-two passengers were on board, making it Britain's first biofuel powered commercial flight. Thomson hopes to make biofuel flights a regular occurrence from 2012,…
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Biodiesel producer Argent Energy Group has been awarded £7 million (€8.1 million) from the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) to help fund its development. Argent secured £4 million from RBS and £2.95 million from the bank's asset financing division, Lombard. The banking package includes the provision of debt and full-money transmission services. Lombard is funding the purchase…
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The US Navy has flown an MQ-8B Fire Scout helicopter on a blend of biofuel and jet fuel, it said on 4 October. The unmanned biofuel-powered flight took place at Webster Field in St. Inigoes, Maryland. The Unmanned Aircraft Systems Test Directorate piloted the aircraft, which used a blend of camelina-based fuel and JP-5 aviation fuel. 'Today's flight marks a significant milestone with Fire Scout…
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In Spain, Iberia and Repsol have flown an Airbus A320 from Madrid to Barcelona on a combination of biofuel and jet fuel. The flight consumed 2,600kg of camelina-derived bio-jet and conventional Jet A-1fuel, which led to a CO2 saving of 1,500kg. Honeywell-UOP manufactured the synthesised paraffin bio-kerosene, while Repsol evaluated and certified it at its Technology Centre. 'The fight against…
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Targa Resources Partners, a supplier of midstream natural gas and natural gas liquid services in the US, has acquired two US-based terminals for refined petroleum products and crude oil storage. The first, Targa Sound Terminal, is located on the Hylebos Waterway in the Port of Tacoma, Washington. It has a capacity of 758,000 barrels and handles refined petroleum products, LPGs and biofuels,…
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