The veggies might have a nice, healthy green tone, but sometimes the fuel to deliver them… well, not so much. But this story from the Nelson Star in British Columbia says a Canadian organic grocery supply is working biodiesel into its delivery trucks to make those greens truly green. Kootenay foodies and entrepreneurs Paul and Clare Kelly of Winlaw are …
U.S. Utility-Scale Solar Capacity Tops World
A flurry of activity in the last couple of months of last year looks like it has pushed U.S. utility-scale solar capacity into first place worldwide. This article from Ciol.com says several projects appear to have pushed the Americans past the Chinese, who had taken the lead during part of 2013. Recent figures from CAISO, California’s transmission grid operator, show …
Maine Wind Project Faces Crucial Vote This A.M.
The fate of an offshore wind project is in the hands of the Maine Public Utilities Commission this morning. This story from the Bangor Daily News says the floating turbine technology project is facing the commission vote on whether it can move forward under a long-term power contract. Tuesday’s PUC meeting is not a public hearing. Only commissioners will be …
Feds Continue Crackdown in RIN Fraud Case
More charges are coming against an Indiana company that defrauded investors and the government over Renewable Identification Numbers. FuelFix.com reports the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is bringing charges against Evansville-based Imperial Petroleum and its wholly owned subsidiary, Middletown, Ind.-based e-Biofuels for falsely generating more than 33.5 million invalid RINs. The EPA alleges that e-Biofuels generated more than 33.5 million …
Researchers “Milk” Algae to Get Biodiesel Feedstock
Usually, when biodiesel producers are using algae to provide the feedstock oil to produce the green fuel, they have to destroy the algal cells to get the oil. But this article from Phys.org says Australian researchers might have found a way to “milk” the oil from the algae species Bortyococcus braunii so they can keep producing more biodiesel feedstock. Murdoch …
Ethanol Keeps Record Corn Crop’s Prices Up
A record corn crop usually means falling prices at market for U.S. farmers. But this article from BioFuels Journal says a new report from a Kansas State University agricultural economist says high demand from ethanol producers is supporting the prices despite the record-high 13.9 billion bushels of corn last year. “The markets responded positively to the corn data,” said Dan …
Iowa U.S. Senate Candidates Support Biofuels
Considering the state’s significant role in biofuels and renewable energy, there’s little surprise that primary candidates for the Iowa U.S. Senate seat are expressing their support of the green fuels. The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) says its 2014 Iowa U.S. Senate Primary Candidate Renewable Fuels Survey shows there’s strong, bipartisan support for renewable fuels among the state’s top candidates. …
Lignol Ups Ownership of Territory Biofuels to 100%
Canada-based Lignol Energy Corp. is taking 100 percent control of Australia’s largest biodiesel producer, Territory Biofuels Ltd. (TBF). This article from Biodiesel Magazine says Lignol already had a controlling stake (55 percent) in the 37-million-gallon refinery. TBF owns a large-scale biorefining facility located in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia, which includes a Lurgi-designed biodiesel plant and the largest glycerin refinery in …
Whikehart to Keynote National Ethanol Conference
The man in charge of Marathon Petroleum Company‘s biofuels supply chain will deliver the keynote address for next month’s National Ethanol Conference in Orlando, Fla. The Renewable Fuels Association announced David Whikehart, Director of Product Supply and Optimization at Marathon, will speak at the conference on Tuesday, Feb. 18 at 8:45 a.m. EST. “David will be able to provide the …
Connecticut City Installs Kyocera Solar Panels
Solar panels with the ability to offset the power needs of 5,000 homes have been installed in a city in Connecticut. Kyocera announced the 5-megawatt AC (7.4MW DC) project in Somers, Conn. “Kyocera solar modules have earned a reputation for being some of the most efficient and reliable in the industry, built on our 38 years of experience in manufacturing …