Biofuel use and support will be a topic at the upcoming BIO World Congress. The Honorable Dennis McGinn, assistant secretary of the Navy, Energy, Installations & Environment, will be speaking about “Overcoming Challenges to Biorefinery Scale Up”. His remarks will take place Monday, April 18, 2016 at 4:30 pm. In 2009, under Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus established aggressive goals to increase the Department of the Navy’s energy efficiency, decrease its reliance on foreign sources of oil, and diversify its shore and operational energy supplies. On January 20, 2016, Secretary Mabus kicked off the Great Green Fleet (GGF), a year-long initiative highlighting the Navy’s efforts to transform its energy use to increase operational capability.

“The United States Navy and Marine Corps are diversifying our energy sources to increase our operational flexibility, which strengthens our ability to provide the global presence that is our mission,” said McGinn in advance of his presentation. “We’ve purchased drop-in, cost-competitive alternative fuel for our ships and we are helping to grow our domestic alternative fuel industry.”

Monday’s “Overcoming Challenges to Biorefinery Scale Up” General Plenary Session will address what is needed to ensure the successful scale up of a commercial industrial biotechnology process. The panel will be moderated by Dan Cummings, Chief Executive Officer, Guidewire Strategies and speakers include: Jeff Lievense, Senior Engineering Fellow, Genomatica; Dennis McGinn, Assistant Secretary of the Navy – Energy, Installations & Environment, U.S. Department of the Navy; and Alan Propp, Business Development Manager, Merrick & Company.

“The United States Department of the Navy has taken bold, determined steps toward energy security, by adopting cost-competitive biofuels and alternative energy sources. The Navy’s leadership has enabled advanced biofuel producers to create partnerships and put steel in the ground for new biorefineries,” added Brent Erickson, executive vice president for BIO’s Industrial & Environmental Section. “We are looking forward to Assistant Secretary McGinn’s remarks about what the U.S. Navy has in store for the future.”