Domestic Fuel

State and local officials were on hand this week for the groundbreaking of what will become Nebraska’s largest wind farm.

This story from the North Platte (NE) Bulletin says the wind farm, near the Northeast Nebraska town of Bloomfield will be the state’s first community-based wind project:

When completed, the Elkhorn Ridge Wind Facility will have 27 wind turbines and generate enough electricity to power 25,000 homes.

The facility is the first project to be developed using provisions enacted during the 2007 legislative session, allowing Nebraska’s publicly-owned utilities to purchase electricity generated by wind turbines owned by community partnerships.

Nebraska produces just 73 megawatts of wind-produced electricity. This project will more than double that amount as it will crank out 80 megawatts when fully operational.

Working with funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation, the National Biodiesel Board (NBB) is granting $1.2 million to the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St. Louis, Mo. for a three-year project to enhance oil production from soybeans.

This NBB press release says it’s just another step the group has taken to free this country from foreign oil dependence:

“This grant is yet another of the Danforth Center’s unique partnerships for supporting basic plant science research. In this case, the partnership will address the pressing needs for more efficient methods to produce fuels from renewable plant sources,” said Danforth Center President Dr. Roger N. Beachy. “We greatly appreciate the support of Senator Kit Bond and his staff in facilitating the relationship between the Danforth Center and the National Biodiesel Board in an effort to increase the oil feedstock for biodiesel production.”

Danforth Center Principal Investigator Dr. Jan Jaworski will lead the research project which will be focused on increasing the oil produced in soybean seeds by altering specific biochemical pathways that are embedded within the soybean plant. “We will undertake a new approach to enhancing the production of soy oil with a goal of increasing the percentage of oil produced in each seed,” Dr. Jaworski explained. “While this approach is new, we are confident our results will lead to increased oil production without reducing the amount of protein in the seeds: soy protein is an important source of food and feed.”

The U.S. isn’t the only country in North America that’s trying to fuel change in fuel standards. The Canadian Renewable Fuels Association says a new poll suggests Canadians are just as bio-conscious…

A new nationwide poll shows that Canadians overwhelmingly support the national renewable fuels strategy to blend biofuels like ethanol and biodiesel in Canada’s fuel supply.

Currently in Canada we are able to produce roughly one billion litres of ethanol and 100 million litres of biodiesel. By no later than 2012 that is expected to increase to more than 2.5 billion litres of ethanol and more than 500 million litres of biodiesel. The renewable fuels industry is investing more than $1.5 billion in building production capacity in Canada and is helping to create 10,000 direct and indirect jobs and generating $600 million in annual economic activity.

Updated with recorded video

Hello from Washington, DC and the National Association of Farm Broadcasting annual Washington Watch program. I’m covering their conference on our sister site, AgWired. Today at 1pm eastern time, I’ll be attending a press conference at the National Press Club being hosted by the Renewable Fuels Association. In attendance will be:

The Honorable John Block, former Secretary of Agriculture
Tom Buis, President, National Farmers Union (NFU)
Bob Dinneen, President of the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA)
Rick Tolman, CEO, National Corn Growers Association (NCGA

The topic will be: “Farmers and Ethanol Industry to Present the Facts On Food Price Increases.” This topic just won’t go away and it’s at least in part due to the immense amount of misinformation being spread in the media, most notably this week, the Washington Post with their irresponsible series called, Global Food Crisis.

I’m hoping to be able to stream the press conference live this afternoon and you’ll be able to watch it here with the following player. Basically, starting at 1pm or within a few moments of that, you should be able to click on the player and see the live stream. A lot depends on the internet connection I’ll have there. In any case, I’ll also be recording it to post on Domestic Fuel as well.

Update: The live stream worked! Here is a recording of the first 20 minutes or so:

Here is some additional footage of today’s press conference:

Listen to the entire one hour plus press conference here: food-price-press-conf.mp3

You can see an online photo album from the press conference here: RFA Press Conference Photo Album

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (28.6MB)

An opinion piece in GreenEnergyWar.com asks an interesting question: Wouldn’t we miss the 500,000 barrels of oil that biofuels replace every day?

Check out what former California Energy Commissioner John Geesman (who, by the way, has also been following California politics for more than 40 years) has to say:

As debate continues to rage over the role which biofuels policies have played in the extraordinary inflation in world food prices, a sobering awareness may spread. Crop-based fuels like ethanol and biodiesel may have already become an indispensable element of global supplies of liquid fuels. Their absence could have a significant impact on the price of oil.

Significantly, that 300,000 barrels-a-day amount represents one-third of the world’s growth in the demand for oil last year, which was about 900,000 barrels-a-day.

Now, I don’t know about you, but 15 percent more for my gas would push it over $4-a-gallon… and I know I’m not paying as much as some people are paying. I’m just glad we’ve got some folks outside of OPEC doing what they can to make it a little better for folks like you and me… and some floks who are writing opinion pieces like Geesman is doing.

A student from Augsburg College in Minnesota has come up with a new method of biodiesel that has landed his story on Good Morning America and before the Senate Agriculture Committee.

This story from TwinCities.com says Brian Krohn, along with chemistry professor Arlin Gyberg, Krohn’s college adviser, are making biodiesel from non-food stocks like algae:

Their research is drawing attention as prices for soybeans, corn and other commodities climb beyond the reach of some of the world’s poorest inhabitants, partly because of their value in making fuels like biodiesel and ethanol.

The new process can use oils squeezed from a wide range of sources — from animal fat to common algae to corn mash left over from ethanol production — all with fatty acid content that normally rules them out as sources of biodiesel, the professor said.

In addition to using non-food stocks, the process is faster and cheaper than using soybeans, helping settle part of that food-versus-fuel debate.

As technology unleashes more and more energy possibilities from more and more crops, it can get a little confusing as to which plants can do what. Ceres, Inc. plans to clarify bio-friendly seeds with its new bioenergy seed brand.

Energy crop company Ceres, Inc. plans to market its agricultural seeds and traits under the trade name Blade Energy Crops in the United States. Company president and CEO Richard Hamilton unveiled the new brand at the BIO World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology in Chicago earlier today.

The company says the Blade name was inspired by its first crops, switchgrass, sorghum and canes, which are from a category of closely related grass species, known as C4 grasses. C4 grasses are the natural world’s most efficient engines of photosynthesis, the process by which plants store solar energy in the form of carbohydrates. New technologies have made it possible to convert the most abundant form of these energy-rich molecules, called cellulose, into renewable fuels.

President Bush talked about the farm bill, higher food and energy costs, expanding domestic oil production, ethanol and other alternative energy sources during a press briefing on Tuesday morning.

The president was critical of Congress blocking efforts to explore in ANWR and to expand capacity and build more refineries, as well as a “massive, bloated farm bill that would do little to solve the problem” of higher food prices. He indicated they were considering a summer moratorium on the federal gas tax to help alleviate pain at the pump and he defended the use of ethanol for economic and energy security.

“The high price of gasoline is going to spur more investment in ethanol as an alternative to gasoline,” Bush said. “And the truth of the matter is it’s in our national interests that our farmers grow energy, as opposed to us purchasing energy from parts of the world that are unstable or may not like us.”

In reaction to the question, why haven’t you put more resources into renewable energy research, Bush responded.

“We’ve put a lot into ethanol. As a matter of fact, the solution to the issue of corn-fed ethanol is cellulosic ethanol, which is a fancy word for saying we’re going to make ethanol out of switchgrasses, or wood chips. And we’re spending a lot of money along those lines.

But energy policy needs to be comprehensive. And we got to understand we’re in a transition period. The problem is there’s been a lot of focus by the Congress in the intermediate steps and in the long-term steps — the long-term steps being hydrogen; the intermediate steps being biofuels, for example, and researching the biofuels, and battery technology — but not enough emphasis on the here and now.”

Regarding food price inflation, Bush said that “85 percent of the world’s food prices are caused by weather, increased demand and energy prices — just the cost of growing product.” The president said the United States is concerned about the scarcity of food in poorer countries and will continue to be generous in food donations abroad.

Read the transcript of the president’s remarks here.

The development of agriculture-based biofuels is critical to revitalizing rural communities, according to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer.

Speaking to farm broadcasters meeting in Washington, Schafer said managing the blending of energy and agriculture is one of the top priorities for USDA. “If we over the next ten years could convert one-fourth of the four billion barrels of foreign oil that we import into this country into biofuels, not only would it increase the security of our country, it would double farm income,” said Schafer. “You can imagine if we doubled farm income in this country, what a revitalization would take place in rural areas.”

Regarding the concern about food and feed price increases relating to biofuels, “We need to remember that only about 25 percent of the corn crop goes into ethanol today and we have been able to stay ahead of that by yield increases,” Schafer said. “We have heard of this ‘perfect storm’ coming together – increased consumption, energy prices, biofuel generation, weather patterns – all those have come together to form this huge pressure on food and feed costs. I don’t think its a perfect storm.”

He explained, “When you have a storm, and you’re out on the calm sea, the storm comes in and jumbles everything up for awhile and then the storm goes away and the sea becomes flat again. The reality here is consumption and as consumption is increased we are not going to fall back.”

Schafer says corn ethanol will continue to be important in meeting the Renewable Fuels Standard and as a stepping stone towards cellulosic ethanol.

Listen to Schafer’s comments on biofuels here.
schafer-biofuels.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (3.4MB)

Sensor Electronics of Minneapolis has developed a new gas detector that can detect dangerous concentrations of ethanol. The detector is thought to be ideal for protecting biofuel refineries.

It’s designed for applications in biofuel processing plants, pipelines, pumping stations, storage facilities, fuel dumps, distribution networks and the like.

The cylindrical unit measures 8 inches high overall, 2.5 inches diameter. The stainless-steel housing cannot rust or corrode, meaning exceptional operating life.

Seed giant Monsanto and Mendel Biotechnology are teaming up to develop a variety of grass seeds ideal for ethanol and biodiesel production.

This story from the St. Louis (MO) Post-Dispatch has more:

[St. Louis-area]-based Monsanto will lend its crop testing, breeding and seed production expertise to the BioEnergy Seeds & Feedstocks unit of Mendel, which is headquartered in Hayward, Calif.

Scientists in many companies and research institutions are tackling the challenges of unlocking energy from cellulosic sources to produce fuel. If they succeed, it could alleviate the demand for corn-based ethanol that is putting pressure on world stocks of food and animal feed.

Monsanto and Mendel have been involved in biotechnology projects in corn, soybeans, cotton, and canola for more than a decade.

The biodiesel-powered boat has started on its round-the-world journey… again. As you might remember, it was nearly a year ago that the “Earthrace” had to abandon its attempt to break the world record for circumnavigation of the globe in a boat.

This article from Biodiesel Magazine says the green-fueled boat left port at Sagunto, Spain, on Sunday, as it makes its way around the globe on 100 percent sustainable fuel:

“For the next 40 days we’re going to believing on adrenaline,” said Pete Bethune, a skipper for Earthrace, who auctioned off his home and sold his company to fund the building of the $1.5 million vessel. “The crew have entered race mode and we have one thing on our minds – the world’s record,” he said.

“This time it’s really happening and we’re all raring to go,” Bethune said earlier this year. “Our new team is working really well together and we have the skills we need on board [as well as] the ground-crew to break the record.”

You can follow the Earthrace’s progress at www.earthrace.net.

VeraSun Energy broke ground on a new facility last week that will tap into ethanol for oil.

VeraSun’s patent-pending Oil Extraction process is designed to yield 7-8 million gallons of corn oil annually from 390,000 tons of distillers grains currently produced at VeraSun’s ethanol production facility in Aurora, S.D. The corn oil will then be made available for sale into the biodiesel market, thus increasing the renewable fuel supply without an additional feedstock supply. The result of the process also includes enhanced distillers grains through the concentration of protein and the reduction of fat. One gallon of corn oil yields roughly a gallon of biodiesel.

According to VeraSun’s Don Endres, “With fuel prices where they’re at, with diesel prices where they’re at, we need more fuel, and this will go right into the biodiesel market, fit right into that fuel stream so it’s a much more highly-valued in the fuel stream then, what it is as oil in the fuel.”

VeraSun expects to start producing the corn oil later this year. The company also plans to use the process at two of its plants in Iowa next year.

Among those giving a hand at the groundbreaking were South Dakota Governor Mike Rounds, Reid Jensen with the South Dakota Corn Utilization Council and Matt Hartwig of the Renewable Fuels Association.

A tentative agreement reached by conference committee members on funding for a new farm bill would reduce the tax incentive for blenders to use ethanol from 51 cents a gallon to 45 cents. The president of the Renewable Fuels Association says they can support that.

“We do understand that they are looking at that in order to pay for cellulosic tax credits and some other important programs,” said Bob Dinneen in an interview Monday. “While we wish they could find other means of paying for those important priorities, we understand the budget constraints that Congress is under.”

The ethanol blenders credit reduction would go into effect once the Environmental Protection Agency administrator certifies that the 7.5 billion gallon mandate has been reached. The ethanol import tariff would also be extended until Dec. 31, 2010, which would be in line with the ethanol tax credit.

Meanwhile, a new subsidy of up to $1.01 per gallon would be created for ethanol made from biomass sources other than corn.

The reduction in the existing blenders tax credit would reportedly save over $1 billion, while the blenders credit for celllulosic ethanol would cost approximately $400 million.

Tax credits for biodiesel were also stripped from the bill.

Congress is currently working to complete a new farm bill under the fifth extension of current law. Congress passed and President Bush signed the latest extension until May 2 but it will likely be May 8 before they can actually get a bill finished and on the president’s desk. The current law expired in September.

The state of sustainable agriculture in developing countries will be one of the main issues addressed at the BIO International Convention this summer. The Biotechnology Industry Organization is hosting the convention in San Diego from Tuesday, June 17 through Friday, June 20.

Biotechnology leaders from around the globe will be descending upon San Diego, one of the leading biotech hubs in the world, to discuss the most pressing issues and share their unique perspectives. In addition, there will be a total of 36 regional and country pavilions within the BIO Exhibition with several new pavilions, including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Dubai, and South Africa.

This year’s keynote speakers include Gen. Colin Powell, J. Craig Venter, Ph.D., and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Read the rest of this post…