The world’s leading producer of camelina… a non-food oilseed… is teaming up with the University of North Dakota to produce biodiesel jet fuel from the grain.
Great Plains – The Camelina Company and the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) at UND have agreed to allow the EERC to use Great Plains’ proprietary technology to produce advanced fuels:
Great Plains has studied the science and agronomy of camelina for over 10 years and for the past three years has contracted with growers throughout the United States and Canada to grow the crop. Currently, the company is processing camelina seed to create biodiesel, but the EERC technology will maximize the biofuels potential for the crop.
The EERC has developed a feedstock-flexible process that can utilize various crop oils to produce combinations of jet fuel, diesel, gasoline, and propane that are identical to petroleum-derived fuels, enabling direct substitution with these fuels and providing renewable options across the spectrum of fuel needs.
“The EERC has strategically positioned itself to be the first to produce a truly sustainable renewable fuel that can be used the same way as traditional fuels with no special requirements,” said EERC Director Dr. Gerald Groenewold.
“This is an exciting opportunity for us and we can’t wait to hit the ground running,” says Sam Huttenbauer, CEO of Great Plains. “Not only is camelina a non-food crop, but it will also provide for an identical replacement of the traditional petrochemicals with the technology that the EERC has pioneered.”