Companies Join to Build Slovenia’s Largest Biodiesel Refinery

John Davis

A Slovenian oil refining company has partnered with an Austrian financier to build Slovenia’s largest biodiesel plant. The plant in Lendava, Slovenia (pictured below) will produce about 18 million gallons of biodiesel a year… making it one of the biggest in Europe. According to a press release on the company’s website, Nafta Lendava, Eko Nafta, Nafta Biodizel and the Austrian …

Biodiesel, International

Saudi Alabama?

John Davis

This story in the e-zine Tuscaloosanews.com (a weekly on-line publication produced by the students and faculty of the University of Alabama’s College of Communications) says that the raw products in Alabama have the state poised to be the next Saudi Arabia… at least in the alternative fuels world. Using a combination of fuels produced from chicken poop, cellulose from the …

Biodiesel, Cellulosic, Ethanol

Daryl Hannah Promotes Biodiesel

Chuck Zimmerman

I started out wandering around and getting my bearings here at the Biodiesel Conference and just like last year, one of the first persons I ran into was Daryl Hannah. Daryl has been to every National Biodiesel Conference and can’t believe how much it has grown. She’s pictured here with Jenna Higgins, Communications Director for the National Biodiesel Board during …

Audio, Biodiesel, Biodiesel Conference, Miscellaneous

Arriving at Biodiesel Conference

Chuck Zimmerman

Hello from San Antonio, location of this year’s National Biodiesel Conference. I just got in and am using the Internet Cafe here in the convention center. It’s sponsored by BioEnergy of America, Inc., giving everyone a convenient place to check email or as in my case, post onto their blog. Right now a lot of people are getting checked in …

Biodiesel, Biodiesel Conference

From Briefs to Biodiesel

John Davis

Who’s not wearing underwear? Well, apparently, besides some Hollywood celebrities, not enough of us. And, strangely enough, that could be good news for the biodiesel industry. This story on Bloomberg.com says a British-based distributor of underwear, Caldwell Investments, is getting out of the skivvies biz and is planting 1,000 jatropha trees in Brazil with plans to make biodiesel. The biodiesel …

Biodiesel, International

BioWillie on the Web

John Davis

The distributor of Willie Nelson’s BioWillie® brand biodiesel, Earth Biofuels, has launched a new website. According to this Earth Biofuels release, the site, www.BioWillieusa.com, is supposed to help inform customers on company developments and where they can get BioWillie® biodiesel. From the BioWillie website: All Americans understand the importance of reducing our dependence on foreign oil. Long or short haul …

Biodiesel

Washington State Canola Grower and Biodiesel Maker Ink Deal

John Davis

Seattle-based Imperium Renewables has agreed to purchase a large amount of canola oil from Earth-firendly Natural Selection Farms to make biodiesel. The deal will produce one million gallons of biodiesel a year and is, in fact, the largest sale of Washington state-produced canola oil ever. From this Businesswire.com story: “This partnership demonstrates the incredible opportunity for our state’s agricultural industry …

Biodiesel

Senate Energy Committee Holds Biofuels Conference

Cindy Zimmerman

An all-day conference on biofuels was held Thursday by the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. The conference featured six panels and 33 witnesses from industry, agriculture, infrastructure, research and development. Much of the testimony focused on the need for increased funding to develop cellulosic technology. National Commission on Energy Policy Counsel David Conover told the committee they …

Biodiesel, Cellulosic, Ethanol, Government, News

ARES, Blue Sun Biodiesel Announce Joint Venture

John Davis

ARES Corporation, a California-based engineering and research firm, has joined with Colorado-based Blue Sun Biodiesel to build a 15-million gallon/year B100 biodiesel plant under the name ARES Blue Sun near Clovis, New Mexico. They’ll break ground early this year. According to a joint company press release: “This new joint venture represents the initial implementation of ARES’ strategic goals in creating …

Biodiesel

Brazil Opens Country’s Largest Biodiesel Mill

John Davis

Brazil has opened a 108-million-liter (approximately 25 million gallons) a year biodiesel plant… the largest in the South American country. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva attended the event. This story in Brazzil Magazine says this one operated by Brasil Ecodiesel is not the only biodiesel mill in the country. According to the (Brazilian Ministry of Mines and Energy), …

Biodiesel, International