Other News

Public-listed Greenergy Holdings has confirmed a planned PHP25 million (€476,550) investment in a local Philippines biofuel company Isabela Alcogas. Greenergy’s board of directors disclosed to the Philippine Stock Exchange that the company had the ‘green light’ to subscribe the PHP25 million worth of Isabela Alcogas shares, with authority to even go up as high as PHP50…
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Shares in US-based renewable chemical and advanced biofuels company Gevo rose this week after a favourable court ruling in a patent case. A US district judge dismissed claims by Butamax Advanced Biofuels that one of Gevo’s fuel blending products infringed in one of its own patents. The ruling now means Gevo can now resume sales of the product to any potential customers. Gevo shares were up…
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A $62 million (€49.2 million) development is the latest effort by the US government to invest in biofuels. Around half that figure will be made available via federal funding to advance the development of biofuels to replace diesel and jet fuel used in both the military and the commercial and shipping sectors. The rest of the investment will be used to fund research into early-stage biofuel…
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US coast guard buoy tender Henry Blake, based in Everett, Washington, completed its first trip powered in part by biofuel this month. Officials say this represents the first Coast Guard ship to test biofuel after Henry Blake made its journey around local navigation aids on Puget Sound powered by a 50-50 blend of diesel and algae oil. The Coast Guard has partnered with the US Navy to research…
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Australian-based sugar refiner and renewable energy provider Sucrogen has agreed to support the Townsville 400 V8 Supercars event with bioethanol fuel and sponsorship for the next two years. Sucrogen Bioethanol’s (SB) 85% ethanol blend fuels the cars at every event and is made from molasses, a by-product of its sugar production. ‘We are delighted that E85 has been embraced with…
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Ethanol producer Poet is now producing corn oil, as well as ethanol at its refinery in Groton, South Dakota. ‘It is one more value-added product we can produce from a kernel of corn,’ says Kelly Kjelden, general manager. ‘Poet is always looking for the next step to add value, to be more efficient and to make the plant more viable and profitable. Being able to extract corn oil…
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New Jersey-based alternative fuel producer Primus Green Energy has started building its new $7 million (€5.6 million) demonstration plant. It is slated for completion in late 2012 and is designed to produce 33 litres of petrol per hour. The facility will serve as the proving ground for the company’s first commercial plant, which it hopes to break ground on next year. Primus is making…
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Leading renewable chemical producer Gevo has announced a collaboration with US-based ethanol producer BioFuel Energy to explore high-volume production of isobutanol. ‘The capacity of BioFuel's plants would allow us to begin delivering isobutanol at the scale that refinery customers are likely to demand,’ says Patrick Gruber, CEO of Gevo. ‘BioFuel Energy has agreed to explore a…
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The South African Department of Energy (SA DoE) will publish its final set of mandatory regulations concerning blended biofuels use next month. As well as revealing the initial ratio of blended fuels using bioethanol and biodiesel, the regulations will also define who, from cane farmer to dispenser, gets paid what in its production. The SA DoE issued draft regulations a year ago and has reviewing…
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US-based oil refiners Valero Energy (VE) and ethanol producers Nedak Ethanol (NE) have both temporarily closed their ethanol plants in Nebraska recently. VE spokesman Bill Day cited ‘poor profit margins’ returned by its facility, which produces up to 110 million gallons of biofuel annually, as the reason behind the suspension. There were no signs that VE’s other nine ethanol…
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Experienced energy advocates In Thailand have called for the country to step up its development on biodiesel and ethanol production by working with nearby countries. Former executive director of the Petroleum Institute of Thailand, Khunying Thongtip Ratanarat, believes joint development programmes with the likes of Indonesia and Malaysia would help reduce Thailand’s reliance on oil…
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US-based Greenleaf Biofuels is due to fully open what it is claiming to be the ‘biggest biodiesel facility in New England. Construction begun eight months ago and the plant is expected to produce around 10 million gallons of biodiesel a year. Greenleaf is hopeful it will be online by September and its Waterfront Street location has links to both rail lines and a nearby port. ‘Eight…
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The 48th edition of the ELE Rally in the Netherlands hosted races that had cars fuelled by Gasoline Ethanol Methanol (GEM) from second generation biofuels producer BioMCN. The BioMCN 350Z Challenge saw 14 cars powered by GEM, which consists of the three fuel elements mixed in various ratios to almost match E85 properties but with a significantly lower CO₂ footprint than traditional fossil…
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