Domestic Fuel

A new, 2.6 million-gallon-per-year seed-crushing and biodiesel plant has come on line in Canada.

Biodiesel Magazine reports that the Milligan Bio-Tech Inc. plant in Foam Lake, Saskatchewan is now fully operational:

According to a spokesperson for the company, the new plant is being referred to as Milligan Bio-Tech’s “optimization” plant. Its production capacity is10 MMly (approximately 2.6 MMgy) and uses a process developed by Milligan Bio-Tech in conjunction with Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada and the University of Saskatchewan.

The spokesperson said previously the company was crushing off-spec, or non-food grade, canola at the site in Foam Lake and producing test batches of biodiesel off-site. Meanwhile, Milligan Bio-Tech had been optimizing its crush technology to be suited for the off-spec canola—a feedstock the company continues to use in its commercial biodiesel production.

Company officials are having an official grand opening this Thursday, July 23, 2009 at 11:30 am with a lunch, tours and even a demonstration of the world’s first biodiesel jet truck – Prairie Gold.

A South Carolina company has a patent pending on a new method for growing, harvesting and extracting oil from microalgae, promising dramatic cost savings and greater yields over existing algae production technologies.

Renewed World Energies (RWE) says company president Richard Armstrong and chief technical officer Tim Tompkins have come up with a system efficiently remove nitrogen oxide and carbon dioxide from flue gas (compressed CO2 can also be used) emitted from the power generation industry, resulting in clean air, and producing high quality, commercially valuable algae biomass and a highly nutritious livestock feed source:

“Being at the forefront of an innovative technology that promises change for the better across so many spectrums is inspiring,” states Richard Armstrong, president of Renewed World Energies. “We are seeing our goals come to fruition with a viable alternative that unites green and market standards and a day when dependence on foreign oil is a distant memory.”

RWE has made a conscious effort to “be green.” The site selection of their facility was based on being within a 50-mile radius of their system and is located on unused farmland, to reduce transportation and land use costs. The facility is situated on roughly five acres of industrial property, which is located near a major US highway, and 4 miles from the port of Georgetown.

The facility will have two acres of commercial algae growing systems, plus smaller test plots.

Comments were due today to the EPA regarding the Green Jobs Waiver that would allow up to 15 percent ethanol (E15) in gasoline. Just as the clock ran out, The Association of International Automobile Manufacturers (AIAM) filed comments opposing the waiver request. It is no coincidence that AIAM filed their comments at a time when others could not respond. However, it is encouraging to note that support for the E15 waiver is mounting.

Michael J. Stanton, President and CEO of AIAM, outlined the association’s concerns in a public statement that you can read in full here.

“AIAM and its member companies have long recognized the importance of addressing climate change and have supported efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while significantly increasing fuel economy. With so much progress made by government and industry in recent months to meet these goals, we believe it would be premature for EPA to approve the near-term distribution and sale of fuels containing more than 10% ethanol without further testing to prevent unintended negative consequences.”

Stanton continued, “The Clean Air Act requires producers of any new fuel or fuel additive to show that those fuels will not contribute to the failure of vehicles or engines to meet emissions standards. Most vehicles currently being driven by American consumers were not designed to operate on ethanol blends greater than E10. If EPA were to approve the sale of such fuels, we believe a range of problems would result that could jeopardize the control or reduction of automotive emissions.”

The range of problems they cite are harm to emissions systems and drivability problems.

The real reason AIAM opposes the passing of the waiver is that they would lose an opportunity to sell the cars that are aging on dealer lots across the country. Several programs are in place to incenticize people to buy new cars including the Cash for Clunkers program. But what AIAM and other detractors are choosing not to acknowledge is that to ensure the country blends 36 billion gallons of biofuels by 2022 the minimum blend of ethanol must be raised. We cannot let the U.S. auto industry keep us from achieving energy security. Although it’s too late to submit your comments to the EPA, I encourage people to respond to AIAM’s comments. You can learn more about the Green Jobs Waiver at www.GoE15.com.

It is a very happy time for the community of Welcome, Minnesota as their corn ethanol plant is finally producing ethanol. The plant has been idle for more than a year due to VeraSun Energy’s bankruptcy. The halt in bringing the plant online caused the community to feel a significant economic loss. The plant was one of seven purchased by Valero Energy this past March.

According to Valero spokesman Bill Day, the plant started grinding corn on June 30th and produced their first batch of ethanol last week. The plant will produce 100 million gallons of ethanol a year and will be operating at full capacity.

This is great news as more ethanol plants cease production and many are not operating at full capacity.

Need a little pick-me-up? Watch the news story here.

With the slurry of marriages and divorces in the biofuels and biomass industry, it is hard to keep up. In the municipal sold waste arena, CleanTech Biofuels has announced a joint research agreement with Fiberight to establish, “the anticipated yields and operating costs from using biomass produced by CleanTech Biofuels for the production of ethanol using Fiberight’s proprietary enzymatic processes.” Under this agreement, CleanTech will provide around 2,000 lbs of biomass feedstock derived from Chicago’s municipal solid waste to use in Fiberight’s conversion technology. CleanTech Biofuels is a company focused on developing technology to convert municipal solid waste into biomass to be used to produce biofuels such as ethanol.

According to Fiberight CEO, Craig Stuart-Paul, preliminary tests using the CleanTech biomass in the Fiberight system have been encouraging, with anticipated ethanol yields in excess of 80 gallons per ton of biomass used. Earlier successes point to solid waste as a viable feedstock to produce ethanol.

Ed Hennessy, CEO of CleanTech said of the agreement, “This research agreement with Fiberight is another step towards validating the use of our biomass as a feedstock for energy production. Our combined technologies are capable of turning the garbage from our communities into clean renewable energy. In a market where energy demand continues to grow and the cost of handling waste continues to increase, CleanTech is ideally situated to bring its technology to municipalities, solid waste haulers, operators of landfills, and materials recovery facilities.”

CleanTech’s biomass technologies are available for cities, solid waste haulers and landfill operators to produce renewable energy including electricity production and biofuel production.

OriginOil just announced another breakthrough process to transform algae to renewable oil: a Dynamic Control System designed to continuously respond to algae’s behavior. This invention improves energy efficiency and growth rates by ensuring the right types and amounts of light are used at all times as the algae grows to maturity.

Scott Fraser, VP of Operations for OriginOil and one of the inventors of the process said, “This is a true bio-feedback system. The algae lets the controller know what it needs as it needs it, creating a self-adjusting growth system.”

At the heart of the system is a programmable controller that receives information from multiple sensor types reading the algae culture. The controller, which can be programmed for specific algae strains, responds by sending out commands to change lighting parameters such as intensity, pulsing frequency, and duty cycle. OriginOil’s existing automation of the nutrient delivery process will be integrated in the final version of the Dynamic Control System. Click here to watch a brief video of the process.

“We are currently using the new Dynamic Control System to test many lighting variations such as concentration, angles, distribution, and pulsing intervals,” said Dr. Vikram Pattarkine, OriginOil CTO. “We expect this study to yield a wealth of data about what works best in algae lighting.”

It appears that some of the concern over the difficulty to secure financing for biofuels projects may be a worry of the past. Rabobank recently established a Renewable Energy and Infrastructure Finance (REIF) team in the Americas. Tomas Emmons has been selected to head the department with teams in Europe, Asia and now New York. Also in the states, the Department Of Energy (DOE) has made several big funding announcements for advanced biofuels development including the release of $85 million for development of algal fuels.

The new REIF team will specialize in non-and-limited-recourse finance solutions in renewable energy, bio-energy and energy infrastructure projects. In addition to biofuels and biomass investments, they are active in wind and solar.

Specifically for the United States, Rabobank, “intends to establish relationships with developers, owners and operators of renewable energy generating facilities and technologies.” The bank will initially participate in and co-underwrite project financings, and in the future will lead project financing transactions. In addition, Rabobank is looking for opportunities to finance the renewable energy activities of its food and agribusiness client base.

Marcel Gerritsen, Global Head of REIF, said in a press statment, “Rabobank’s agricultural roots and cooperative structure ensure that we are especially aware of the need for sustainable development, and drive our goal of making sustainability an integral part of our business. Our goal overall is to apply our financial services to effectively contribute to the transition from a high-CO2 to a low-CO2 economy and, within the renewable energy sector, to further develop sustainable energy supplies and technologies around the world.”

Last week, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced that they would offer up to $85 million in funding for the development of algae-based biofuels and advanced, infrastructure-compatible biofuels. The funding comes as part of the funds released from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The goal of the monies is to bring together a group of leading algae and advanced biofuels scientists and engineers from both universities and private industry in an attempt to bring new technologies and fuels to market in an accelerated time frame.

During a session today from the World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology and Bioprocessing,”Algae for Fuels and Chemicals,” several presenters predicted that commercial production of algal fuels was still 5-10 years away and that better collaboration was needed to bring the fuels to market faster. In addition, Steve Gluck, a scientist with Dow Chemical Company noted that more government funding is needed for algae research. You can read about the session’s key highlights by visiting the Biotechnology Industry Organization’s blog.

Algae can be used to produce many products including green diesel, green gasoline and green aviation fuels. Early tests from various companies such as Amyris and Solazyme have determined that blending algal fuels into current gasoline blends requires no additional infrastructure development and meets or exceeds EPA emission standards.

The FOA is available at FedConnect, and can be found by searching for Reference Number DE-FOA-0000123. You can also see details of additional funds from the Recovery and Reinvestment Act dedicated to biofuels by visiting the DOE’s website. To learn more about biomass and biofuels research and development, visit the DOE Biomass Program website.

BBI International has released a technical report on combined heat and power (CHP) that addresses the impact on statewide renewable portfolio standards (RPS) when companies install biomass fired combined heat and power facilities (CHP) onto current ethanol production plants.  This report focuses specifically on Illinois, which currently produces 976 MGY of ethanol, with an additional 188 MGY of capacity under construction and 78 MGY of capacity currently idled.

This report is a first in the series of technical reports.

“Combined Heat and Power facilities fired by biomass represent a real opportunity for ethanol producers to control energy costs, contribute to their state’s renewable portfolio standards, and reduce the carbon score of their facilities,” said Jeff Coombe, BBI Manager of Technical Studies.

BBI International’s report analyzes the biomass required to fuel a CHP facility, the incremental energy required to size and handle the biomass, and average capital costs. The report also models the economic impact of a number of variables on the financial viability of deploying a CHP facility including the prices of natural gas, electricity and biomass.

BBI International’s report is available for purchase at http://store.bbiinternational.com.

A $3.5 billion dedicated ethanol pipeline may be extended to South Dakota. POET LLC and Magellan Midstram Partners LP are studying the feasibility of the 1,800-mile pipeline.

“With South Dakota being in the top five of ethanol producing states and having almost a billion gallons of production capacity, that just made sense,” said POET spokesman Nathan Schock. The extended pipline is dependent upon studies addressing technical issues and Congress revising the U.S. Department of Energy’s loan guarantee program, the companies say.

If built, the route would begin in Davison County, S.D. — further west than O’Brien County, Iowa, as originally planned — and deliver the alternative fuel from plants in Iowa, South Dakota, Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio to distribution terminals in the northeastern United States.

Magellan has been working with the Association of Oil Pipe Lines for years on how to transport ethanol through a pipeline, said spokesman Bruce Heine. But he added that the biggest challenge is stress corrosion cracking, in which ethanol tends to cause internal cracking of carbon steel pipe more so than gasoline or diesel. Magellan thinks the solution will be a combination of potential additives to help protect the pipe and the use of different welding techniques.

Schock said POET is taking the lead on market analysis for the project, while Magellan is addressing technical and issues. The two are working together on legislative challenges. He added that he hopes for a decision on whether to move forward by the end of year or early 2010.

Dresser Wayne and Finnish energy company, St1, is bringing five E85 biofuel dispensers to the greater Helsinki area. These sites are eco-conscious wind and solar powered retail fuel locations.

“We want to engage our customers with an informative experience – one that also offers the reward of doing what’s right for the environment. The Dresser Wayne Global Ovation iX dispenser’s user-centric design and leading technology help make this possible,” says Mikko Reinekari, St1 sales director.

The Global Ovation iX dispenser includes many elements that support the customer service objectives including the St1 Refuel RE85 compatibility. The Global Ovation iX dispenser features the Xflo™ fuel meter, available in an eco-fuel compatible design. The Xflo meter helps ensure precisely-blended alternative fuels among other advantages.

“We applaud St1 and their efforts to offer sustaining, alternative fuels for motorists. We are pleased to be able to offer highly-accurate dispensing, vapour recovery and marketing solutions for this innovative retail fueling initiative,” says Damian Tracey, President EMEA.

Dresser Wayne E85 dispensing units can also be found throughout the over 2,000 E85 fueling sites throughout the United States.

The ethanol industry lost another visionary this past week. Raphael “Ray” Katzen passed away on Sunday, July 12. Ray was a visionary that saw the potential of cellulosic ethanol while working at a defense plant under contract for the federal government during World War II. His life’s work was dedicated to producing ethanol from a variety of feedstocks cost competitively. The engineering company he founded, Katzen International Inc., was known across the globe for its cutting edge technology.

Renewable Fuels Association President Bob Dinneen expressed his sadness at the loss of this industry leader:

“Ray Katzen is well known to the ethanol industry for the technology he commercialized and the passion he expressed when talking about the evolution of the worldwide ethanol industry. While he could have deservedly rested on his laurels in retirement, Ray never looked backwards; he always looked forward, challenging the industry to always work toward improvements and innovation in technology. Accompanied by his lovely wife, Selma, Ray was a presence at virtually every gathering of the industry, poised to question and comment, assuring the industry kept its eye on the vast potential of cellulose. Ray Katzen will be sorely missed by a grateful industry, but his legacy of technology innovation and his commitment to the future will endure.”

The deadline for submitting comments to the Environmental Protection Agency period on the Green Jobs Waiver to allow up to 15 percent ethanol (E15) blends in gasoline has arrived.

Growth Energy officials believe support for the proposal has grown since it was submitted by the industry in February, with President Obama, administration officials, governors, members of Congress, state and local elected officials and groups across the country all going on record in support of increasing the blend to E15.

Just last week, ten Midwestern governors wrote to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson requesting that ethanol blending levels be increased to 15 percent. “Increasing the amount of ethanol blended into gasoline is an important step that will have dramatic, positive effects on advancement of the renewable fuels industry,” said South Dakota Gov. Mike Rounds. “In addition to economic benefits, increased use of ethanol and biofuels will lead to greater energy independence by utilizing homegrown commodities, materials and technologies.”

Earlier this month President Barack Obama said, “We want to be able to compete with countries like Brazil that now are running basically their entire automobile fleet on biofuels. If Brazil can do it, there’s no reason why America can’t do it.” During a stop in Iowa last month, Energy Secretary Steven Chu said, “I don’t want to prejudge what they’re going to find, but if the existing automobile fleet can handle 15 percent, I would say let’s make that a target and go to 15 percent.”

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said that she supported a higher ethanol-to-gasoline blend rate as a way to reduce reliance on petroleum imports and that, “It seems to me we should be able to do that.” In addition, a bi-partisan group of 28 Congressional representatives wrote a letter supporting the waiver. “Allowing use of ethanol blends up to E-15 will help us preserve and enhance infrastructure that is critical to the timely development of cellulosic ethanol and advanced biofuels, have significant environmental benefits, foster our nation’s energy independence, create thousands of jobs, and stimulate economic development in communities across the nation,” they wrote. “According to one estimate, allowing blending up to E-15 has the potential to create at least 135,000 jobs.”

Members of the ethanol industry are encouraged to get comments in to EPA on the importance of the Green Jobs Waiver before the close of the business day on July 20. For more information, go to goE15.com.

The ethanol industry is reaching out to motorcyclists this summer with a promotion aimed at bikers attending the 69th annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally August 3-9 in Sturgis, SD.

The Renewable Fuels Association is partnering with the popular Buffalo Chip Campground and the Buffalo Chip Gazette to promote the use of ethanol blended fuels as a way to fight dependence on foreign oil. RFA is also providing a wide range of merchandise and promotional materials to staffers, volunteers and riders at this year’s event.

RFA Director of Market Development Robert White says the Sturgis rally offers an opportunity to highlight the efficacy of ethanol-blends in all engine types. “At nearly 10% of the nation’s fuel supply, ethanol can be found in nearly every gallon of gasoline sold. It is providing a growing renewable alternative to petroleum that is safe and effective for use in all engine types, including motorcycles.”

Organizers of the 2009 Florida Farm to Fuel® Summit report that registrations for the event on July 29-31 are running ahead of last year.

The fourth annual summit will feature addresses by Florida Governor Charlie Crist, Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Charles Bronson, USDA Under Secretary Dallas Tonsager, “Fuel” documentary producer Josh Tickell, and many others.

There will also be a special pre-summit “Biofuels Strategic Meeting: Moving Biofuels into Production in Florida” on July 29th from 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm. The meeting will discuss and explore the opportunities and obstacles the state of Florida faces in infrastructure development of biofuel facilities.

Registration and more information is available at FloridaFarmtoFuel.com.