Domestic Fuel

There are three major hurdles facing the solar industry today: lack of long-term uninterrupted government support, lack of government and private investment capital and difficulty with project permitting. People interested in the solar industry can learn how to clear these hurdles by attending the Solar Power Generation USA conference, being held in Las Vegas, Nevada January 20-21, 2010.

“The solar industry in the United States has faced numerous tectonic shifts in support of solar energy. Today, the shift is in favor of the solar industry moved by the need for the country to find ways to reduce its dependence on fossil fuel based energy sources,” said Sarah Ellis, Managing Director, Green Power Conferences. “With this new fast-paced movement, companies must learn how to capitalize on the opportunities in front of them.”

The goal of this conference is to help companies develop successful utility scale solar projects. One area in particular that companies struggle with is understanding the key environmental, land use and permitting issues.

With the recent influx of funds, The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has received a large number of proposed applications for renewable energy projects. “We have responded by partnering with the Department of Energy on the Solar PEIS, by working through the Federal budget cycle to fund Renewable Energy Coordination Offices and renewable energy related positions, and by developing a coordinated, focused effort to move projects through the environmental review and permitting process more quickly but without taking shortcuts,” said Mike Nedd, Assistant Director – Minerals and Realty Management with the BLM.

Nedd is just one of dozens of insightful speakers scheduled. For a full list of speakers and to register, visit www.solarpowercongress.com. Enter code 4RC-201 for 20 percent off the current registration rate.

The biofuels industry received an early holiday present yesterday when the House of Representatives voted to restore $2 billion to the alternative loan guarantee program that was borrowed to fund the Cash for Clunkers program.

However the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), while pleased to see the funds returned, noted that this is just one step among many that are needed to support the industry. “This is an important step and one the Senate should replicate as soon as possible,” said RFA President Bob Dinneen. “Restoring these funds is just the first step. Making sure the shovel-ready advanced biofuel projects can gain access to these loan guarantees is vital for them to begin construction and production commercial volumes of next generation renewable fuels.”

RFA is concerned that the funds will not be used to further the energy, economic and environmental goals of the United States. During COP15, Obama is expected to announce the country’s goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions 17 percent. Specifically, the RFA noted in a letter to the Department of Energy in October that the loan guarantee program was being crafted in a manner making it extraordinarily and unnecessarily difficult for advanced biofuel companies to secure the guarantees.

In a letter Dinneen wrote earlier this year he stated, “A fundamental flaw of the loan guarantee program is that DOE is weighing the applications of emerging technology projects such as cellulosic ethanol using the same criteria as mature technology projects, and against more mature technologies, such as wind and solar, that have been commercialized in other countries. The challenges facing next generation advanced biofuels are simply much different than those of the renewable power sector.”

Dinneen stresses the importance of focusing support on already proven technologies and those advanced biofuels technologies that are close to the finish line in lieu of not-yet proven and may never make it to market technologies.

“Under the worst case scenarios of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, ethanol production today is meeting the GHG reduction goal the President will announce to much fanfare. Providing security to advanced biofuel companies in this tumultuous investment climate through loan guarantees ensures that America’s biofuels industry can continue to do its part and more in the battle against climate change. Allowing these technologies to wither on the vine is not an option,” concluded Dinneen.

A Nebraska family has been named the lucky winners of a flex fuel (FFV) Ford F150 from Growth Energy.

Roger and Margie Johnson of Exeter, Nebraska (seen far left) were the grand prize winners in the Growth Force sweepstakes. The prize was awarded on Thursday to the winners by Wayne Hoovestol, Chairman of Green Plains Renewable Energy and a member of the Growth Energy Board of Directors.

“We are very proud to drive a Ford Flex Fuel Vehicle. If we’re ever going to secure our nation, we need to do it with domestic fuels like ethanol. Ethanol creates jobs here in the U.S., and it gives our farmers market certainty, but just as important is the fact that every gallon of ethanol we make in the U.S. means one less gallon of fuel from overseas,” the Johnsons said.

The giveaway was conducted as part of the campaign launching Growth Force, the individual membership for Growth Energy, a coalition of U.S. ethanol supporters. People who signed up for Growth Force became eligible to win the truck. Growth Force sign-up drives were held at two of the nation’s largest farm shows: the Farm Progress Show in Decatur, Illinois and the Husker Harvest Days show in Grand Island, Nebraska.

“As a member of Growth Energy, we are pleased to award this Flex Fuel Ford F150 truck to the Johnsons,” Hoovestol said at the truck giveaway. “In a short period of time, ethanol has become the third largest supplier of fuel in the U.S. behind imports from Canada and ahead of fuel imports from Saudi Arabia and Mexico. We congratulate the Johnsons.”

More than 13,000 people have joined Growth Force since its inception this summer.

Republican Senator Charles Grassley of Iowa says Democrats seem to just paying lip service to the concept of green energy and green jobs.

He took to the floor of the Senate this week to blast the Democratic leadership for what appears to be allowing the $1-a-gallon biodiesel tax incentive to expire at the end of this month. Here are some of the remarks as posted on IowaPolitics.com:

President Obama and Vice President Biden have been talking for months about the need to create “green jobs.” In fact, President Obama has held three public events in recent days to highlight his concern about the economy and the need to create jobs. Yesterday, the Administration apparently announced billions more in tax credits for renewable energy and energy conservation efforts.

The Democratic leadership is content to leave here without doing the necessary work on extenders, believing that they can extend the tax provisions retroactively sometime early next year. But, retroactivity doesn’t help the U.S. biodiesel market from grinding to a halt on January 1, 2010, because without the incentive, biodiesel will cost much more than petroleum diesel.

Although a one-year extension of the biodiesel tax incentive has breezed through the U.S. House, it’s been all health care all the time in the Senate. Grassley says while lawmakers “dither,” thousands of biodiesel workers could lose their jobs. He adds that any halt to the biodiesel industry could be a death knell for the green fuel.

Solar energy holds great promise for this nation: it’s practically always there, it doesn’t produce greenhouse gases, and it’s free. But production of the materials used to capture the power of the sun is not always a green proposition … and they’re certainly not free!

That’s where BioSolar comes in. The Los Angeles area-based company has found a way to use some recycled materials and non-food sources to make one of the key components of a solar panel – the backsheet – now commonly made from petroleum products.

In this edition of the Domestic Fuel Cast, I talk to David Lee, CEO of BioSolar about how they are using recycled cotton and castor bean oil not only to make the material from something other than non-renewable oil, but also make it for about 25 percent less than conventional methods … making solar energy green for the environment and green for the pocketbook.

It’s quite an interesting process, and you can hear my conversation with David here: DFCast-12-17-09.mp3

You can also subscribe to the DomesticFuel Cast here.

The National Biodiesel Board seems to be conceding defeat for a long-term extension of the the biodiesel blender tax credit … but the group seems to be holding out hope for a one-year extension of the incentive set to expire after Dec. 31, 2009.

The U.S. House has already passed the tax extender package in H.R. 4213, which included a one-year extension of the biodiesel blender tax credit. Biodiesel Magazine reports now they have to get the Senate to agree:

“In terms of the five-year tax extension that would also alter the credit from a production excise credit to a producer credit, it is clear that due to the legislative calendar and the priorities currently facing Congress—healthcare being front and center—that legislation (S.1589 and HR 4070) will not be voted on this year,” [Michael C. Frohlich, Director of Communications for the National Biodiesel Board’s Washington, D.C., office] said. “Therefore, the NBB has decided to endorse the one-year extension as to ensure that the tax credit does not expire, and will continue to work towards a multiyear producer credit in the future.”

So far, the measure has been referred to the U.S. Senate where it was received and read twice, then referred to the Committee on Finance.

Researchers believe they have found a way to turn sugar beets into a low-cost biofuel, thanks to the development of an enzyme that speeds up the process.

A press release from Atlantic Biomass, a Frederick, Maryland, biotech-biofuel company focused on developing cutting-edge systems to produce advanced biofuels from sustainable, non-food biomass, says work with Hood College has produced a thermostable enzyme that opens the way to a new pathway for low-cost biofuel production using sugar beet pulp as feedstock. The researchers have put their findings in the latest issue of the American Society of Microbiology’s journal Applied and Environment Microbiology:

Thermostability, or the ability to perform at high temperatures, is needed in biofuel and other industrial applications so enzymes can survive in the higher temperatures of commercial production systems and use the higher temperatures to speed up conversion reactions. The pectinmethylesterase (pme) enzyme developed by the Hood College/Atlantic Biomass team was fashioned to function in the sugar beet production environment of 650C (approximately 1500F) which is at the top end for this class of enzymes.

“This development alone is important for opening up the use of beet pulp and similar agricultural residues for biofuel production,” said Atlantic Biomass president and founder Bob Kozak. “More important, the development of this enzyme led us to an understanding of how enzymes break down plant cell walls and overcome biomass recalcitrance.” Using this research, Atlantic Biomass is currently patenting that process in addition to the pme enzyme. “Overcoming biomass recalcitrance is the Holy Grail of economical biofuel production,” Kozak pointed out. “I think we’re finally on the right path.”

Kozak hopes the Obama Administration will be able to see the value in research like this and fund more of it.

A 20,000 acre land lease is helping move forward a community wind project in Minnesota.

Root River Energy and managing partner National Wind have announced they have secured the 20,000 acres in Mower and Fillmore Counties in Southeast Minnesota. This press release from National Wind says the land represents about two-thirds of the leased acres needed to develop up to 300 megawatts of community-owned wind energy in the area:

“The project is really coming together nicely as we continue to receive a positive community response from both the Fillmore and Mower County footprints,” says [Root River Energy’s Jim] Connolly. “The Mower County expansion has helped accelerate the project’s development. Also, landowners are realizing that our business model focuses on building positive relationships, allowing the community to share in the project’s revenues and influence the process to meet their needs.”

Root River officials say they are working with local farmers to make sure access roads to the project don’t interfere with current farming operations.

The Low Carbon Fuel Standard is set to go into effect in less than two weeks yet there are concerns among the ethanol industry that regulations will be implemented without having the appropriate reporting and compliance tools in place.

Bob Dinneen, President and CEO of the Renewable Fuels Association submitted a letter earlier this week to Dean Simeroth, Chief of the Criteria Pollutants Branch at CARB. In the letter, Dinneen wrote, “Many of our member companies, including both ethanol producers and marketers, have raised numerous questions regarding LCFS reporting and compliance requirements. Unfortunately, the final regulation order and the supporting materials released Nov. 25, 2009, did little to address these lingering questions and concerns.”

As declared in the ruling, the first year of the program will require quarterly and annual reports; however, mandatory greenhouse gas reductions will not be enforced until 2011. The problem with meeting this requirement lies in the fact that the means of demonstrating compliance with the program and submitting reports is still unavailable to regulated parties.

“With the CARB about to implement far reaching regulations for its Low Carbon Fuel Standard, it is vital that the agency have in place all of the methods and systems necessary to collect information to make the program operate,” said Dinneen. “Unfortunately, those methods and systems are not in place – a situation which is likely to cause confusion and delay in getting the program up and running.”

Several of the issues identified included: reporting requirements for ethanolproducers when ownership of fuel is transferred once the fuel is inside the State of California; CARB’s definition of “neat ethanol”; if CARB was developing a standardized application form for the submission of information on delivery methods; why the CARB had not yet publicly released its online Compliance and Reporting Tool (CRT) and when it intended to do so; and more.

Dinneen concluded, “It is incomprehensible that implementation of a regulation could occur before the means of demonstrating compliance is completed and accessible to regulated parties. For these reasons and others, we believe the Office of Administrative Law will be forced to return the LCFS package to CARB and require the agency to complete its unfinished work related to the compliance and reporting system.”

Growth Energy’s Co-Chairman (Ret.) Gen. Wesley Clark, warned today that continuing dependence on petroleum for automotive fuel is not only a carbon risk, but is a security risk as well. Clark delivered this message during a side event hosted by the Danish Climate Consortium and organized by Novozymes during the COP15 conference in Copenhagen.

Gen. Clark’s remarks were part of his speech titled, “Global Energy Security in a Climate Affected World,” where Clark noted that continuing on our dependence on imported petroleum was a dangerous course.

“We suffer the inefficiencies of cartel pricing and oil shocks… Then there is the military cost to ensure steady access to foreign oil from parts of the world that are volatile, or outright hostile to Western values and policies. Taxpayers fund the defense of oil shipping routes with an estimated annual cost of more than $50 billion,” said Gen. Clark.

While expressing concerns about America’s dependence on foreign oil, he also offered a solution. “Ethanol is a low-carbon fuel – as much as 59 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions than the production of gasoline. The most advanced technology, with closed loop biorefineries, offers us even cleaner alternatives, as much as 67 percent fewer GHGs compared to gasoline. With cellulosic ethanol, we could produce 86 percent fewer.”

Gen. Clark concluded, “What does ethanol offer us to solve this dilemma? The domestic production of nearly 6.5 billion gallons of ethanol in the United States in 2007 eliminated the need to import at least 228.2 million barrels of oil for gasoline.”

Miscanthus appears to be the hot feedstock for December. Last week, Sunbelt Biofuels announced that it will be licensing Freedom Giant Miscanthus, and today, Speedling Incorporated and Mendel Biotechnology, Inc. announced an agreement to work together to research, develop and commercialize a “cost-effective propagation and production system for Mendel’s advanced Miscanthus product candidates.”

Neal Gutterson, Mendel’s president and CEO said, “Commercial-scale deployment of genetically diverse, high-yielding perennial grasses will be required for the country to meet its renewable energy and fuel targets in an economically and environmentally sustainable manner. Speedling has demonstrated best-in-class capabilities in vegetative plug production with superior customer service.”

Speedling will apply its proprietary propagation methods to optimize production that Mendel will use for testing in emerging bioenergy markets. The two companies also plan to deploy several biomass power projects in target locations that are well suited to grow Mendel Mischanthus products.

Greg Davis, CEO of Speedling noted, “We believe that the surest path to success in the rapidly emerging bioenergy industry is partnerships that match complimentary skills and expertise. Speedling’s proven productions capacities and Mendel’s biogenetic expertise certainly meet that criterion.”

The first commercial service station in New Jersey that offered biodiesel is celebrating the first anniversary of that historic event.

As you might remember from my post last year, it was an early Christmas present for the area around Maplewood, New Jersey as Woolley Fuel became the first in the state to offer Biodiesel to the public. Proprietor Norm Woolley, Jr. first offered B5 biodiesel and now offers up to 30 percent biodiesel blends … with plans to up that to higher percentage blends in the future.

The green fuel has been a hit with the locals:

“The use of Biodiesel in our jitney buses is a success; Maplewood’s commitment to lowering our carbon footprint makes the use of this type of fuel a natural step in the process”, said Maplewood Mayor Victor DeLuca. Biodiesel displaces foreign oil, improves air quality and improves diesel engine performance.

Since Woolley Fuel became the first to publicly offer the cleaner burning fuel 10 more biodiesel dispensers have opened. “It’s nice to be the first, but it’s also good to see that others are able to make a difference in different regions of the State.”

And for those who try to argue that it’s not financially viable, Woolley says that biodiesel demand has upped the company’s sales by 8 percent each month. And there are plans to start selling BioHeating oil for homes.

Congratulations and happy anniversary, Woolley’s!

It could become the next great fuel source from the agricultural community. A Nebraska-based biomass supplier and manufacturer has debuted a product it touts as “Coal from the Farm.”

Next Step Biofuels, Inc. has launched PowerPellets, a green fuel made from corn stover – all the leaves, cobs and stalks leftover after the corn is harvested – that burns like coal and will help with that state’s Renewable Portfolio Standard laws that require utilities to generate more of their power from renewable sources:

Next Step COO Russ Zeeck explained that PowerPellets solve the logistical and operational problems that have thus far prevented wide-scale use of biomass to generate electricity. “Utilities have long been aware of the environmental benefits of burning biomass, but they’ve had a hard time adopting it,” said Zeeck.

“PowerPellets overcome the three major problems that utilities have had with biomass. First, unlike raw biomass, PowerPellets are easy and affordable to ship and store. Second, unlike other pelletized biomass, PowerPellets are hard and friable which means they pulverize and feed just like coal; PowerPellets can be folded into a coal-fired plant’s operations with little or no additional capital.
And, third, because Next Step makes PowerPellets from corn stover – America’s most abundant source of renewable biomass – there is a deep, reliable and price-stable supply.”

Next Step Biofuels says the PowerPellets were recently tested and found to do what was claimed of them during rigorous testing conducted at the Energy & Environmental Research Center at the University of North Dakota.

Next Step plans to negotiate with several utilities to supply PowerPellets starting next year.

The top executive at Audi’s U.S. offices says American political leaders need to think less about plug-in electric vehicles and more about vehicles that run on biodiesel, as well as standardizing the rules for biodiesel.

The Detroit News reports that Audi of America President Johan de Nysschen made the remarks at Washington, D.C.’s National Press Club, where he told the audience that despite the current administration’s love of extended-range electric cars, such as the Chevy Volt, that technology is not financially viable:

“I understand why political leaders have fallen in love with hybrids and electrics. But this may be the one time you’ll hear someone in Washington say it shouldn’t be a monogamous relationship,” de Nysschen said.

He noted that if one-third of U.S. vehicles used diesel power, “America would save 1.5 million barrels of oil a day” — the same amount the United States imports from Saudi Arabia daily.

Of course, Audi’s pushing of biodiesel is not just coincidental. The article points out that half of the company’s European sales are diesels, and Audi has a couple of diesels on the U.S. market, including the A3 TDI, which just picked up the “Green Car of the Year” award during recent Los Angeles Auto Show.

Representatives of the National Sorghum Producers (NSP) witnessed a pilot test of bioenergy sorghum at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) this week.

NSP collaborated with NREL to provide almost 100 different sorghum samples for testing, eventually choosing two for pilot testing. The resulting data shows that high biomass forage sorghum demonstrates great potential to fit into cellulosic ethanol conversion. Sorghum varieties have a wide range of basic sugars and structure which could ultimately meet the needs of multiple biofuel systems.

Colorado sorghum farmer Terry Swanson, Vice Chairman of the NSP Board of Directors, is pleased with the NREL research because of potential it holds for both the nation and sorghum producers. “Renewable energy will play a critical role in the future of our nation’s quest for energy independence, and the work NREL is doing will help the sorghum industry establish itself as a major contributor to that cause,” said Swanson.

The test this week showcased three years of bioenergy sorghum research that was made possible by a Department of Energy grant obtained through NSP’s efforts.