A Texas-based renewable energy company is taking over an abandoned electrical plant with plans to run the generators on green energy sources. This press release posted on MarketWatch.com says Biofuels Power Corporation will purchase the site, infrastructure and equipment of the decommissioned H.O. Clarke Electric Generating Station in central Houston: The operational infrastructure on the H.O. Clarke site includes 65,000 …
Oklahoma Potentially Alt Energy Leader
While it might have a past deeply rooted in petroleum, attendees of the Oklahoma Biofuels Conference in Oklahoma City this week were told renewable energy has a huge future in the Sooner State. This story from Forbes says a huge wind corridor in the western part of Oklahoma, along with perennial native grasses for biofuels, gives the state a great …
Renewables Have Mixed Results at Polls
Renewable energy proposals had mixed results in yesterday’s elections, with Missouri easily passing one measure but California rejecting two others. This entry from the InformationWeek blog has details: In Missouri, Proposition C was passed, requiring investor-owned electric utilities “to generate or purchase electricity from renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, biomass, and hydropower with the renewable energy sources equaling …
Using Ike’s Biomass to Produce Power
There is some actual good that will come out of the devastation of Hurricane Ike. This story from Greentech Media says Biofuels Power Corp. has announced plans to build a 4-megawatt power plant the will produce electricity from the woodchips and other debris from the storm: The Woodlands, Texas-based company, traded over the counter using the symbol “BFLS,” on Friday …
Summit Looks at Algae Biodiesel Future
More than 650 attendees and 50 speakers looked at the future of algae biodiesel at a recent conference in Seattle. The Algae Biomass Summit, hosted by firms Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and Byrne and Company, brought together those exploring the scientific and commercial advances of the field of the slimy green biodiesel feedstock. Our friends at Biodiesel Magazine covered …
Transition to a Bioeconomy: Part III
In just about a week and a half, government officials, bioenergy experts and leaders in the private industry will gather in St. Louis, Mo., for the third in a series of conferences sponsored by the Farm Foundation addressing the issues facing rural areas as they move to a bioeconomy. Michael Popp, professor of Agricultural Economics at the University of Arkansas, …
Updated Biomass Energy Website
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy recently updated the website for its Biomass Program and is seeking feedback from those interested in biofuels. The Biomass Program works with industry, academia and national laboratory partners on a portfolio of research in biomass feedstocks and conversion technologies. Through research, development, and demonstration efforts geared at the …
Cellulosic Ethanol Close to Commercial
Doubts about commercial opportunities for cellulosic ethanol are evaporating: “It is no longer a question of if we are able to produce cellulosic ethanol, but when,” POET CEO Jeff Broin said. Jeff announced POET’s commitment to develop a commercial cellulosic ethanol plant in Elmersville, Iowa at the Ethanol Conference and Trade Show in Omaha, Nebraska earlier this month. Construction on …
Georgia Researchers Increasing Ethanol Yields
A group of researchers from the University of Georgia are working on technology to get more ethanol from non-food sources, such as biomass. This story from ChemicalOnline.com says they’re finding a way to make ethanol out of bermuda grass, switch grass, napier grass and even lawn clippings cleaner than previous biomass ethanol efforts: “Producing ethanol from renewable biomass sources such …