The world’s largest corn ethanol producer is now successfully producing cellulosic ethanol at a pilot plant in South Dakota. According to company officials, POET Research Center in Scotland, S.D. is now producing cellulosic ethanol at a rate of 20,000 gallons per year using corn cobs as feedstock. “The start-up of the pilot scale facility has been extremely smooth,” said POET …
Economist Says Biofuels Demand Will Drive Crop Prices
An agricultural economist speaking to members of the nation’s largest general farm organization meeting in San Antonio this weekend said crop prices this year will be driven by demand for biofuels. Jim Sullivan of Informa Economics in Washington, D.C. told a crop outlook seminar at the American Farm Bureau Federation 90th annual meeting that the global recession will mean weakening …
Outgoing Ag Secretary Notes Biofuel Gains
The outgoing U.S. Secretary of Agriculture listed advancements in the renewable fuels industry among the accomplishments of the Bush administration over the past eight years. Speaking to reporters this week, Secretary Ed Schafer noted that growth in ethanol and biodiesel production have helped create “remarkable prosperity and growth in the agriculture economy” during the Bush administration. “Looking to the future, …
Cellulosic Ethanol Company Raises Capital
A company claiming to have the capability to produce “third generation” ethanol has raised $34 million to prove it. Colorado-based ZeaChem is developing a cellulose-based green fuels and chemicals biorefinery platform that converts renewable non-food biomass into market-competitive products such as ethanol. The new funds will be used to build ZeaChem’s first cellulosic biorefinery set to begin construction this year. …
Petroleum Chief to Address Ethanol Conference
The new president and CEO of the American Petroleum Institute (API) will address the nation’s ethanol producers at the first industry conference of 2009. Jack Gerard, who was appointed head of the API in November, has been confirmed as a keynote speaker for the 14th Annual National Ethanol Conference: Policy & Marketing, which will be held February 23-25 in San …
Ethanol Report Year in Review
In this edition of the “Ethanol Report” podcast, we take a look at 2008 – a challenging year full of surprises for the ethanol industry. This report features comments from this past year made by Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) President Bob Dinneen, RFA Chairman Chris Standlee of Abengoa Energy, former Secretary of Agriculture John Block, EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson, and …
Top Ethanol Stories of 2008
Here is the Domestic Fuel list of the Top Ten ethanol stories of 2008. 1. RFS Passes Test – The ethanol industry won a major victory August when the EPA denied a request for a partial waiver of the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) as the nation’s producers surpassed the nine billion gallon goal for 2008 to produce over 10 billion …
Florida Cellulosic Ethanol Plant Approved
Plans for a cellulosic ethanol plant in Highlands County, Florida were approved by county commissioners last week. The commissioners granted a special use permit for Verenium to build a cellulosic biofuels plant on 95 acres land currently owned by Lykes Brothers farms. Officials say the plant will cost about $350 million to construct and will produce 36 million gallons of …
Ethanol Use for Hydrogen Research
A research team in New Mexico is studying the possibility of putting biofuel into a fuel cell. According to director of the University of New Mexico’s Center for Emerging Energy Technologies Plamen Atanassov, they hope to “link the world of biofuels with the world of fuel cells.” A major grant from the Department of Energy’s EPSCoR program brought together research …
Missouri Ethanol Plant Expansion
A Missouri ethanol plant is undergoing a $2 million expansion that will increase the plant’s capacity and provide a larger market for locally produced corn. POET Biorefining – Laddonia was built in September 2006 with a capacity of 45 million gallons per year (MGPY), but it actually is producing almost 52 MGPY, according to General Manager Robin Venn. The expansion …