Other News

Excess pressure is said to be the cause of the eruption which occurred on 26 August at the plant at Edathala. At least three other persons were rescued from the site, with six workers believed to be trapped in the waste at one stage. According to the officials, the biogas plant, which was being erected by a private firm, was nearing commission. The plant was being set up to convert the…
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Growing energy security concerns and a booming automobile industry will drive the biofuel demand in India. The country’s ethanol consumption is expected to cross the 700 million gallon mark by 2018. India’s primary energy consumption is among the top five in the world and oil makes up for a large share of the country’s energy mix but due to limited oil reserves it depends on import.…
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South Carolina, US-based Clemson University and ArborGen have partnered to develop purpose-grown woody biomass as feedstock for the biofuels industry. The cooperative will support South Carolina’s ethanol industry based on existing cellulose conversion technology, foster multi-agency collaboration and engage students in research and internships. ArborGen and Clemson will identify areas of…
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Figures for the first half of 2009 show an improvement in Germany’s bioethanol market. The industry suffered a stagnant production spell in 2008, but now Federal Office of Economics and Export Control (BAFA) figures for the first half of 2009 show that the German bioethanol industry is building up with demand rising almost four-fold compared to 2008. New legislation regulating biofuels in…
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A new €12.7 million biomass fuel production plant will be built in Michigan, US. The plant will be built by Cleveland’s Cliffs Natural Resources subsidiary RenewaFuel, on the Telkite Technology Park, which is located at Sawyer Airport near Marquette. The plant will produce 150,000 tons per year of high-energy biofuel cubes, which are a mixture of sustainably collected wood and agricultural…
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Japan’s first cellulosic bioethanol demonstration plant capable of continuous processing is about to launch operation. The facility is located at the Futami Plant of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ Kobe Shipyard & Machinery Works in Hyogo Prefecture. It will produce ethanol, for use in petrol, from rice straw and wheat straw. The companies MHI, Hakutsuru Sake Brewing and Kansai Chemical…
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Envirotek’s Extreme Bio-Diesel facility in California, US, is now in full production after completing the first phase of its refinery expansion. The plant is currently producing 4,000 gallons of biodiesel a day and plans to increase to 10,000 gallons a day by the end of the first quarter of 2010. The plant’s expansion was expected to be completed by January 2010 but has been completed…
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US state Pennsylvania has signed a letter of agreement with 10 other eastern states to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation fuels and other sources by developing a regional low carbon fuel standard. Vehicles using low carbon transport fuels include cars fuelled with biodiesel and ethanol, especially cellulosic ethanol made from non-food plant materials; and those powered by…
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Energy companies Shell and BP have joined the British government in pumping £27 million (€29 million) into research on biofuels that steer away from food crops. It is Britain's largest public investment in bioenergy to date, and includes input from a total of 15 businesses. The sum will fund research at six centres around Britain with the goal of replacing petrol in cars with fuels…
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Texas-based Earth Biofuels has finalised funds for upgrades to its 10 mgy Oklahoma biodiesel production facility. The transaction includes the acquisition of more than 350 storage tanks, with capacities ranging from 8,000 to 39,000 gallons. Approximately 30 of the tanks will be installed at the company’s Durant facility with a total storage capacity of more than 1 million gallons. The…
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Brazilian company Uniduto Logistica will begin building the first phase of a major Brazilian ethanol pipeline in April 2010, with operations due for 2011-2012. The pipeline will run from Brazil's main sugarcane-producing region in Sao Paulo state to the port of Santos. The first phase has a budget of 1.8 billion reais (€603 million) to build 600km of pipeline. Uniduto was created…
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US-based Nova Biosource Fuels has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy with a need to restructure its biodiesel refining business. The company has up to $50 million (€37.8 million) of both liabilities and assets. Nova Biosource produces diesel from animal-derived fats, greases and vegetable-based oils, operating in five refineries. Nova Biosource, which reported a Q1 net loss of $11 million,…
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The Canadian federal government’s ecoEnergy for Biofuels programme is set to offer €45 million in incentives to the GreenField Ethanol plant in Ontario. The 35 million gallons a year (mgy) ethanol plant based in Chatham, which also produces 24 mgy of industrial alcohols, would contribute to an undisclosed improvement in the plant, and speculation pointed towards a cellulosic ethanol add-on…
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A landfill in Knox County, Illinois, is on the verge of signing a contract with ethanol company Big River Resources to build a plant onsite. The new bioethonal plant could generate revenue of around €150,000 a year for the Illinois landfill, in a deal to accept 15-20 tonnes of ethanol and related byproducts per month. The Knox County Board is expected to approve the contract when it meets…
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