The nation’s fifth-largest oil refiner, Marathon Oil, has announced it is the first biodiesel storage and distribution terminal in Kentucky to provide in-line blending. From a company press release dated today, Mary Ellen Peters, Marathon’s senior vice president for marketing says “Biodiesel helps us meet thechanging needs of our customers while supporting Kentucky’s alternative fuels goals. Our focus continues to …
Coal Leader Poised to be Wind Leader
Officials in Wyoming, the country’s largest coal producer, believe the state could become a leader in using wind to generate power. This story in the Casper (WY) Star Tribune says the state ranks as the seventh windiest in America and has 14 million acres of windy land: “Wind energy is the fastest growing energy technology in the world, and the …
Letters to the Editors Show Support for Biodiesel
Just a quick check of a few letters to the editors in some Sunday papers across the country reveals a possible increase in the understanding and acceptance of biodiesel. This letter from Chip Keen, a certified mechanic from Puget Sound in Washington state, wound up in the Fort Wayne (IN) Journal Gazette: Petrodiesel is highly toxic; biodiesel is less toxic …
Companies Join to Build Slovenia’s Largest Biodiesel Refinery
A Slovenian oil refining company has partnered with an Austrian financier to build Slovenia’s largest biodiesel plant. The plant in Lendava, Slovenia (pictured below) will produce about 18 million gallons of biodiesel a year… making it one of the biggest in Europe. According to a press release on the company’s website, Nafta Lendava, Eko Nafta, Nafta Biodizel and the Austrian …
Saudi Alabama?
This story in the e-zine Tuscaloosanews.com (a weekly on-line publication produced by the students and faculty of the University of Alabama’s College of Communications) says that the raw products in Alabama have the state poised to be the next Saudi Arabia… at least in the alternative fuels world. Using a combination of fuels produced from chicken poop, cellulose from the …
From Briefs to Biodiesel
Who’s not wearing underwear? Well, apparently, besides some Hollywood celebrities, not enough of us. And, strangely enough, that could be good news for the biodiesel industry. This story on Bloomberg.com says a British-based distributor of underwear, Caldwell Investments, is getting out of the skivvies biz and is planting 1,000 jatropha trees in Brazil with plans to make biodiesel. The biodiesel …
BioWillie on the Web
The distributor of Willie Nelson’s BioWillie® brand biodiesel, Earth Biofuels, has launched a new website. According to this Earth Biofuels release, the site, www.BioWillieusa.com, is supposed to help inform customers on company developments and where they can get BioWillie® biodiesel. From the BioWillie website: All Americans understand the importance of reducing our dependence on foreign oil. Long or short haul …
Washington State Canola Grower and Biodiesel Maker Ink Deal
Seattle-based Imperium Renewables has agreed to purchase a large amount of canola oil from Earth-firendly Natural Selection Farms to make biodiesel. The deal will produce one million gallons of biodiesel a year and is, in fact, the largest sale of Washington state-produced canola oil ever. From this Businesswire.com story: “This partnership demonstrates the incredible opportunity for our state’s agricultural industry …
ARES, Blue Sun Biodiesel Announce Joint Venture
ARES Corporation, a California-based engineering and research firm, has joined with Colorado-based Blue Sun Biodiesel to build a 15-million gallon/year B100 biodiesel plant under the name ARES Blue Sun near Clovis, New Mexico. They’ll break ground early this year. According to a joint company press release: “This new joint venture represents the initial implementation of ARES’ strategic goals in creating …
Brazil Opens Country’s Largest Biodiesel Mill
Brazil has opened a 108-million-liter (approximately 25 million gallons) a year biodiesel plant… the largest in the South American country. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva attended the event. This story in Brazzil Magazine says this one operated by Brasil Ecodiesel is not the only biodiesel mill in the country. According to the (Brazilian Ministry of Mines and Energy), …