Other News

Renewable energy company and technology developer Coskata has issued biorefinery developer Fagen with a letter of intent (LOI) for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for its commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol plant to be built in Boligee, Alabama, US. Harris Group, a key player in advanced biofuels engineering, will lead the EPC process. 'Fagen and Harris Group will…
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The European Commission has formally approved Greenergy's gold standard sustainability criteria for Brazilian bioethanol, under the Renewable Energy Directive (RED). The approval enables major fuel supplier Greenergy to supply all 27-member states with sustainably sourced bioethanol. Although biofuels being sold in the EU must comply with the RED mandates, countries are interpreting the…
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In Argentina, Nestor Lopez, president of Agrupacion de Colaboracion San Antonio, has opened the company's first biodiesel plant. Mayor Francisco Guiterrez and industry secretary William Gardella also attended the ceremony. The plant, which is currently running at 30% capacity, can produce biodiesel from a variety of fat and oil feedstocks. The company's vice president Diego Lopez says the…
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In Argentina, Q2 2011 biofuel output reached a monthly average of 209,486 tonnes, breaking the previous record. This is a 38% increase compared to Q2 2010. In June 2011 production reached an all-time high of 219,000 tonnes, according to the National Institute of Statistics and Censuses. This rise in production has been attributed to growing domestic consumption, which totalled around 132,000…
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The construction of ethanol producer Poet's commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol plant in Emmetsburg, Iowa, US, will remain on track after it received final approval for a $105 million (€78 million) loan guarantee from the US Department of Energy (DoE). The plant, Project Liberty, will be able to produce 25 million gallons a year of cellulosic ethanol from biomass when it comes online. 'This…
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American energy company One World Clean Energy has signed a memorandum of understanding with South African company Pulexilite to produce biodiesel, ethanol, electricity and natural gas from a new integrated biorefinery. The biorefinery will produce 10MW of electricity each day and 10 million gallons of ethanol and 10 million gallons of biodiesel every year. The $115 million (€83 million)…
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South African company Sasol Synfuels has opened its first cobalt catalyst manufacturing facility in Sasolburg which will convert gas to liquids (GTL). The company will supply the catalyst production to Qatar, Nigeria and Uzbekistan; creating 50 permanent jobs in the local South African community in the process. Lean Strauss, Sasol senior group executive, says: ‘Our total capital spend in…
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The US Navy says it is to adapt a biofuel blend for aircraft and vessel use which will be put in use near Hawaii around the middle of next year. About 450,000 gallons of biofuels will power a navy carrier group during a maritime exercise as part of a $12 million (€8.95 million) deal with Dynamic Fuels, which is a joint venture between Tyson Foods and Syntroleum. Solazyme will also work with…
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On the 4 January 2011 marketer and producer of low-carbon renewable fuels Pacific Ethanol resumed production at the 60 million gallon-a-year ethanol plant in Stockton, California. The first corn grind occurred on 9 December last year and the facility is now operating at close to full capacity. ‘We achieved our goal of successfully restarting the Stockton ethanol facility in December 2010,…
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The EU's 2020 renewable energy targets will be met and exceeded, according to the European Commission, if each country fully implements its renewable energy model and improves financial support, including grants, loans, feed in tariffs and certificate regimes. If renewable energy is to be integrated into the European market as a whole, support between the individual member states needs to…
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New York, US-based Enervation is to acquire the Algona biodiesel plant from the bank, following months of negotiations. The plant in question was constructed back in 2007 but never became operational. Now a large amount of work is needed before the plant can begin running at its 60 million gallon-a-year production capacity. As Enervation examines the existing permits and licenses, the engineers…
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NASA recently tested a type of biofuel on a NASA DC-8 to measure its performance and emissions as part of the Alternative Aviation Fuel Experiment II (AAFEX II). The Hydrotreated Renewable Jet Fuel is made from chicken fat and is an eco-friendly way to travel. ‘The Air Force bought many thousands of gallons of this to burn in some of their jets and provided about 30,283 litres to NASA for…
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New research has estimated 27% of fuel could come from biofuels by 2050, a rough increase from about 55 million tonnes to 750 million tonnes within the space of four decades. A report, released by the International Energy Agency (IEA), says biofuels can help to reduce CO₂ emissions in the transport sector and increase energy security, if produced sustainably. Currently the global share of…
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59% of India's petrol for transport purposes could come from biofuels by 2020, according to the Bloomberg New Energy Finance study titled 'Next-generation Ethanol: What's in it for India'. The new study was released on 17 May 2011 and commissioned by enzyme producer Novozymes. India, the world's sixth largest fuel guzzler, is under pressure to dramatically reduce its reliance on fossil fuels, as…
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