Other News

Bio-based chemicals developer Cobalt Technologies has signed a memorandum of understanding with chemical company Rhodia to build n-butanol refineries throughout Latin America. ‘We’re planning for the first plant to produce 40,000 metric tonnes of butanol per year,’ Steve Shevick, CFO of Cobalt Technologies, tells Biofuels International. The technology will convert sugar cane…
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Biofuels producer Verbio says its group sales have so far risen by more than 45% over the past year to €539 million, which it has attributed to the rising prices of biofuels along with trading activities. In the first three quarters of this year, Verbio produced more than 410,000 tonnes of biofuels, and although this was less than the 427,000 tonnes of biofuels produced in the same period in…
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FuturaGene, a woody crop plantation company for the bioenergy and biofuel markets, has opened a new biotech R&D centre in China. Although Futuragene has been working in China through partnerships with universities and research institutes over the last six years, this is the first such centre of its kind for the company in the country. Stanley Hirsch, CEO of FuturaGene, says: ‘China,…
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Severe flooding in Colombia in December last year has led to a loss of $29 million (€21.77 million) for the country's ethanol industry. Six ethanol refineries were also forced to close down throughout December, after sugarcane fields were immersed in water and access to harvesting equipment was restricted. Speaking about the flooding, which first hit the nation back in mid-November, Jorge…
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Oil major Royal Dutch Shell and Cosan's $12 billion (€8.8 billion) joint venture has been named Raízen. The company will begin operations by mid-2011, producing 2.2 billion litres of ethanol a year, before output capacity is ramped up by 50% by 2016. The JV is due to become the fifth largest company in Brazil, employing around 40,000 staff. In addition to ethanol, the current 23 mills…
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Brazil, the world's third largest sugar producer, is willing to invest in Pakistan's energy sector. Ambassador of Brazil to Pakistan Alfredo Laoni communicated this during his visit to Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI), highlighting that Brazil is prepared to aid community traders and industrialists during Pakistan's energy crisis. The country will increase its assistance through…
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The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is to award bioenergy and biobased products with research grants in order to further the development of sustainable projects. After the selection process, the chosen projects will implement sustainable regional systems for the production of biofuels. The projects to receive the grant aree based in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia,…
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In Honolulu, Hawaii, Hawaiian Electric Company is looking for a 42 million gallon-a-year biofuel supply that will be used to power its Kahe Power Plant in Leeward, Oahu. Preferably, the biofuel will derive from Hawaii-based feedstocks, however bidders may also propose a combination of local biofuel and biofuel sourced from outside of Hawaii. The company also explained that those who cannot supply…
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Elevance Renewable Sciences, a renewable specialty chemicals maker, has acquired the Delta BioFuels facility in Adams County, Mississippi, in the US. The company plans to invest $225 million (€154 million) into the facility, converting it into a biorefinery and creating 165 full-time jobs over the next five years. During the expansion process, 300 construction jobs will also be created. The…
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The first international flight to be fuelled by biofuels successfully landed at Paris-Le Bourget Airport on 18 June 2011. The Gulfstream G450 became the first aircraft to fly from North America to Europe using a 50/50 blend of Honeywell's green jet fuel and petroleum-based jet fuel, which powered one of the aircraft's Rolls Royce engines. The energy crop camelina was used to produce the biofuel,…
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In the south-central region of Brazil, the total sugarcane crush has fallen to 533.5 million tonnes – a drop of 4.21% compared to the 2010/11 end of season harvest. According to the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association (UNICA), the major factors which led to the decrease in sugarcane crush were the increased age at which sugarcane fields are now expected to produce yields, coupled with…
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Aventine Renewable fuels producer Renewable Energy Holdings has reported a net loss of $23.9 million (€16.7 million) for Q2 2011, ended 30 June. This is compared to the $9.3 million net loss for the same three-month period in 2010. Net loss for the six months ended 30 June 2011 was $43.1 million, compared to a net loss of $16.4 million for the four months ended 30 June 2011, and a net loss…
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Both the ethanol and biodiesel global markets continued to grow in 2010 with biofuels production up 17%, compared to a 10% rise in 2009. This is according to a report on 2010 biofuel production by US research company Worldwatch Institute. Ethanol remains the most widely produced biofuel; of the 105 billion litres produced in 2010, 86 billion litres was made up of ethanol. In recent years a number…
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Extreme Biodiesel, a wholly owned subsidiary of BookMerge Technology, will acquire unwanted virgin oils from a New York, US-based warehousing company. Extreme will purchase the oil leftover from the warehouse company's facilities in the south of California. To date Extreme has collected 4,000 gallons at a price much lower than the virgin oil market. This oil, combined with waste oil collected…
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