The loss of the federal $1-a-gallon biodiesel tax incentive is part of the reason a green energy company has decided to give its biodiesel plant to creditors. The Dallas Morning News reports that GreenHunter Energy Inc. made the move to give its Houston biodiesel plant to its debt holders to avoid being delisted by the New York Stock Exchange: GreenHunter …
Holiday Travel Underscores Need for Electric Vehicles
The long Thanksgiving Day holiday weekend is underscoring the need for more electric vehicles on the nation’s roads. This article from Public News Service uses the example of North Carolina, where more than half a million families are traveling this weekend, spending about $12.4 million on gasoline. And that number will be even higher nationwide: Electric cars have long been …
Turning that Fried Turkey Grease into Biodiesel
While the Thanksgiving Day feast might be behind you … except for the leftovers (I’m reminded of the Christmas Story lines where the narrator bemoans the loss of all the turkey-based leftovers when the neighbors’ hounds make off with said turkey – funny stuff!) … there might be one more leftover that you can’t quite put in the freezer for …
Guidance on Ethanol, Biodiesel in Underground Tanks
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is putting out a draft copy of its guidance for the storage of ethanol- and biodiesel-blended fuels in underground storage tanks (USTs). This article from Biodiesel Magazine says that while the agency seems to have a handle on gasoline with more than 10 percent ethanol, there’s a bit more gray area when it comes to …
Biodiesel Board Offers Scholarship to Feb. Conference
They say education is expensive (but ignorance is even more so!), so our friends at the National Biodiesel Board are offering a scholarship to their upcoming conference to better educate students about the importance of biodiesel. One fortunate student scientist with an interest in biodiesel will get a full-ride scholarship to the biggest biodiesel event of the year – the …
Military, Biobased Products Seen as Top Trends for 2011
Military interests and biobased product value streams are seen as the biggest drivers for the biofuel industry in the coming year … that’s according to a new poll from the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) and Biofuels Digest. The poll looked at “11 Hot Trends for 2011” and was launched during the recent Advanced Biofuels Markets 2010 conference in San Francisco: …
Regulators Give Ohio Wind Farm the OK
A 98-turbine wind farm in Ohio is moving forward after regulators in that state gave the developers permission to build the project, designed to generate up to 150.4 megawatts of energy. BrighterEnergy.org reports the Ohio Power Siting Board will allow Houston-based Horizon Wind Energy to build the second phase of its Timber Road wind farm on 15,000 acres leased in …
AFBF: Lame Ducks Could be Pretty Lame for Ethanol, Biodiesel
The American Farm Bureau Federation isn’t expecting too much from the lame duck session of Congress, particularly when it comes to renewal of the federal biodiesel and ethanol tax credits. “I think the lame duck session will be pretty lame,” said Mary Kay Thatcher, Director of Policy at AFBF, during an interview with our own Cindy Zimmerman during the recent …
Eagles to Soar on Wind, Solar Power
Right now, the Philadelphia Eagles are sitting atop their division in the NFL and have to have what’s considered one of the better feel-good stories in pro football with the comeback of Michael Vick (we can debate his merits and whether he was deserving of another chance in some other venue). But the Eagles might be putting up their biggest …
USDA Loan Guarantee Funds Hawaiian Biodiesel Turbine
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has guaranteed a $110 million loan for a Hawaiian utility cooperative that has biodiesel as part of its power generation efforts. BusinessWeek reports the Kauai Island Utility Cooperative received the federal guarantee: [T]he guarantee includes nearly $73 million for hydroelectric plant improvements and a 10-megawatt naphtha/biodiesel fueled combustion turbine. [Hawaii’s Sen. Daniel] Inouye says the …