News

The Spanish government has approved a lowering of the mandatory biodiesel consumption target according to a release from the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism. The target will drop from 7% to 4.1%. ‘It is considered appropriate to revise the mandatory consumption targets for biofuels in 2013 and thereafter, setting targets that minimize the fuel prices and ensure some stability in…
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US-based Piedmont Biofuels (PB) has been certified under the Roundtable on Sustainable Biofuels (RSB) programme following a third-party assessment conducted by SCS Global Services (SCS). PB collects used cooking oil from restaurants in the Research Triangle Park area of North Carolina and uses it to produce biodiesel that is sold locally through seven filling stations. SCS' assessment included an…
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An lliance between ethanol producer Calgren Renewable Fuels (CRF) and feedstock supplier Chromatin will open up a new local supply chain for sorghum in California, US. The multi-year agreement will see up to 30,000 acres of sorghum grain being grown and supplied to CRF, which makes more than 55 million gallons of ethanol a year. Chromatin will work with Californian growers that are…
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A new report by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) claims certain biofuel certification schemes are holding back small producers and developing countries from export drives.  The report, titled Biofuels and the Sustainability Challenge, outlays that current certification schemes are predominately designed to fit the large scale agro-industry, believing that the required costs…
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Portugal-based engineering company Incbio will work with a subsidiary of Green Energy Group to construct a new biodiesel plant in Malaysia. Incbio and Biofuel Limited will construct and operate an 8,000 tonne facility in Kuala Lumpur via grease trap oil taken from municipal wastewater treatment plants, local councils and waste grease collectors. ‘This order is further proof that by ensuring…
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US-based Sequential Pacific Biodiesel (SPB) is to return supplying a B99 biodiesel blend to over 30 local retail outlets throughout Oregon and Washington. The return to the higher blend ratio marks the conclusion of SPB’s winter blending period, where it produces a B50 blend as the fuel demands for effectiveness.  ‘Our winter blending policy eliminates concerns about engine…
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An US biofuels plant owned by Bluefire Renewables has been described as ‘not dead, just dormant’ by Mississippi officials. Itawamba County Development Council executive director Greg Deakle was quoted as saying that work on the Fulton-based plant has gone on ‘indefinite hiatus’ while Bluefire focuses on other projects. The project, which has entered its fourth year and…
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The California Energy commission has injected a multi-million boost into a pilot ethanol plant from Mendota Advanced Bioenergy Beet Cooperative. Mendota will use the $5 million (€3.8 million) to construct a plant that aims to produce 285,000 gallons of ethanol from 10,000 tonnes of beet feedstock. The plant is reported to be situated in Five Points. ‘Farmers need alternative crops that…
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Australian research company Agritechnology has found a location as it further develops a biofuels demonstration plant. A site for the plant has been chosen in Orange, New South Wales and it will aim to convert sweet sorghum, native grasses and sugarcane into high quality biofuel. ‘We are a long way off but ultimately we'd like to provide an opportunity for farmers to have a market for…
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Finland-based energy company St1 is planning to construct a new bioethanol facility in Kajaani. Company executives aim to make an investment decision bout the project this year, which would enable production to begin in 2015. The plant would use sawdust from the local sawmill industry as feedstock. St1 is keen on second generation biofuels and is aiming to hit an ethanol production target of 300…
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Front Range Energy, an ethanol producer in Colorado, US is to move away from using corn feedstock to woody biomass. FRE says it has tested a new process to make ethanol from wood waste and its facility could start commercial production next year. ‘The idea to use biomass to convert to ethanol is not a new idea,’ says Dan Sanders Jr, FRE VP. ‘What's new is the technology to bring…
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State-owned plantation company PT Perkebunan Nusantara (PTPN) is set to widen its product portfolio by expanding into biofuel production during 2013. It has been reported that its sugar and tobacco lines cannot be fully relied on to support the Indonesia-based company, which is seeing increased manufacturing costs, so biofuels and electricity production are set to be introduced. ‘Sugar…
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After finding a potential feedstock in Yellowstone National Park a new biofuels start-up is gathering pace in Montana, US. New company Sustainable Bioproducts, funded by a Small Business Innovation and Research grant from the National Science Foundation, will partner with Montana State University to turn a fungus discovered at Yellowstone into sustainable energy. The fungus, named MK7, thrives in…
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