Other News

In the UK, Scotland comes a step closer to greener heat and power following the signing of a multi-million-pound deal. A contract established between Tullis Russell Papermakers and RWE NPower means a 50-megawatt biomass power plant will supply energy for Tullis Russell’s mill in Markinch, Fife, Scotland. The plant will replace an existing coal-fired power plant, owned by RWE NPower…
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Asia has long fuelled the biofuels boom with its oil-rich feedstocks. It is now using the feedstock waste for generation of green power. Asiatic Group (Holdings) will take a 30% stake in joint venture to develop a RM150 million (€29.9 million) biomass project in Perak to convert empty oil palm fruit bunches into electric power. The group, through subsidiary, Colben Energy (Singapore) Pte,…
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US-based renewable fuels provider New Generation Biofuels Holdings (NGBF) is branching out to Puerto Rico. The company has signed a Letter Of Intent (LOI) with Ace Biofuels of San Juan, Puerto Rico. Under this LOI, Ace Biofuels would license product formulations, manufacturing technology and know-how from NGBF with the intent of constructing a biofuel manufacturing facility and marketing NGBF…
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In support of the upcoming Biofuels International Conference & Expo Canada on 28-29th October in Montreal, Will Thurmond, President of Emerging Markets Online, will present the following webinar on algae’s potential. Webinar Overview: The webinar is scheduled for Tuesday October 6th 2009 at 3pm GMT (UK), 10am EST (New York), and 9am CST Houston. The Algae 2020 Market Strategies and…
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The waste produced from pigs could be the fuel of the future. German biogas plant manufacturer WELtec BioPower has begun building another 500-kW biogas plant in the UK designed to run in part on pig manure. The plant in Staffordshire, England, will be commissioned in January 2010. The investor and farmer will first operate the plant with pig manure and 2,000 tonnes of maize silage a year.…
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US-based Gevo has launched a 1 mgy biobutanol plant in St. Joseph, Missouri. The plant, originally a conventional ethanol plant, underwent conversion to a biobutanol facility. With the launch, Gevo has advanced on two fronts: first, towards demonstration of the viability of its fuel both as a petrol replacement and as an intermediate, convertible into renewable green petrol, green diesel and…
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Canadian biofuel production is expected to rise 76% in two years, as government subsidies for production plants and renewable-fuel requirements take effect. Total biofuel production will reach 2.5 billion litres (660 million gallons) annually by 2011, including 2 billion litres of ethanol and 500 million litres of biodiesel, according to Gordon Quaiattini, president of the Canadian Renewable…
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Murphy Oil has announced that it will buy a corn-based ethanol plant in North Dakota for $92 million (€ 63 million), marking the company's first foray into biofuel manufacturing. The Arkansas-based oil company said the deal will be financed primarily through non-recourse debt offered through the sellers. The company plans to invest $15 million in working capital into the 110 million…
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Bulgaria is boosting its biofuels mix. All Bulgarian petrol stations will be obliged to add at least 2% biodiesel in the diesel fuel after 1 March 2010. All petrol stations will have a two-month period in which they must apply the new rules. This measure has been included in the amendments of the Law on Renewable and Alternative Energy Sources and Biofuels, which the Council of Ministers…
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Suncor has recommenced work on expanding the capacity of its St. Clair ethanol plant in Ontario, Canada. The plant will have a capacity of 105 mgy. The $120 million (€82 million) project was halted in January 2009 due to the current economic crisis. Suncor cut its capital expenditures by 70% for 2009. The company said that the expanded ethanol plant and four wind energy projects would…
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Several foreign and national investors are scouring parts of Africa for high-yielding next generation feedstocks, but this has sparked one government to reportedly suspend all biofuels investments. The attention is centered on jatropha, and mounting pressure from farmers and environmental groups have voiced concerns over food shortages leading the government to further halt land allocations for…
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The Ensus and Hull wheat ethanol plants are expected to utilise 19% of the British wheat harvest, 2.3 million tonnes out of a total annual harvest of 14 million tonnes. The chairman of the National Farmers Union crops board welcomed the plants despite the prospect of wheat imports to meet food needs, saying that the plants represented a price support for the wheat crop. The NFU said that, in…
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US-based biofuel manufacturer Qteros has announced plans to build a $3.2 million (€2.2 million) cellulosic ethanol plant. The plant will be located next to Westover Air Reserve Base in Chicopee, Massachussets, and could potentially create 150 jobs. The facility, which will demonstrate the company’s patented process for converting plant matter to ethanol, is expected to be in small-scale…
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