The World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology and Bioprocessing (BIO World Congress) kicked off this morning in Toronto, Canada with a bang. GreenField Ethanol, the largest producer of ethanol in Canada, announced the launch of G2 BioChem, a collaborative partnership that will validate and bring to commercialization GreenField’s innovative patented process technology. The partnership includes companies such as Novozymes and Andritz …
AEC Supports Domestic Energy Promotion Act
Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley along with a bipartisan group of senators, announced a proposed piece of legislation to promote the development of biofuel infrastructure. The Domestic Energy Promotion Act of 2011 would transition the current blender’s credit to a variable tax credit based on the price of oil, improve tax incentives for blender pumps and ethanol refueling infrastructure, and extend …
Heliae – Measuring Algae by the Barrel
Sun and algae go together like peanut butter and jelly. Just ask Karl Seitz, Co-Founder of Heliae. I sat down with Seitz during the Advanced Biofuels Leadership Conference in DC to learn a little more about his company and their technology. The first unique attribute of the company is their name. Heli is Greek for the sun and the ae …
Biofuels Researcher Receives Award
A biofuels researcher at UC Davis has been selected for a national career award from the National Science Foundation (NSF). The early career development award was given to Tina Jeoh, a UC Davis assistant professor of biological and agricultural engineering. The award is worth $407,573 over five years and will support Jeoh’s studies of how microbial enzymes break down plant …
Rural America Will Provide Energy Solutions
There are advanced biofuels on the horizon and one such fuel will be algae fuels produced from the waste streams of a first generation corn-ethanol plant. In the future, many believe that more co-located biofuel refineries are on the way and the model will be the Green Plains Renewable Energy (GPRE) / BioProcess Algae plants. BioProcess Algae is in the …
BIO Releases Policy White Paper
The Advanced Biofuels Leadership Conference is underway in Washington, D.C. and more than 400 senior level executives are in attendance to learn more about the trends in the advanced biofuels industry. During the Conference, the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) released a new policy white paper that determined the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2) provides both stable market support and a pricing …
ABO Goes to Washington
The Algal Biomass Organization (ABO) may be relatively young, having been formed in March of 2006, but they have made some significant strides in Washington, D.C. in lobbying for advanced biofuels such as algae, to play on the same field as cellulosic biofuels. I caught up with Mary Rosenthal, ABO’s executive director after her multi-day trip to D.C. to learn …
USDA Tours ICM Cellulosic Ethanol Plant
USDA Administrator for Rural Business Cooperative Services Judith Canales is on a tour of Kansas and Missouri to promote the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) along with the development of renewable energy technologies. She was joined by several USDA state directors, and along the tour they stopped in St. Joseph, Missouri to tour ICM’s cellulosic ethanol pilot plant Lifeline …
Senate Hearing Focuses on Ethanol
In the face of increasing unrest in the Middle East and higher gas prices, the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources met this morning to review Department of Energy (DOE) biofuel programs and biofuel infrastructure issues. In testimony before the committee, Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen stressed the importance of expanding the marketing for ethanol-blended fuels …
Obama Sticks to His Guns on Biofuel Policy Support
President Obama is sticking to his guns in his support of biofuels, among other energy sources, as viable ways for America to reduce its dependence on foreign sources of oil. This morning, his administration released its plan for a comprehensive energy policy their report, “Blueprint For A Secure Energy Future.” As a result of the report, the biofuel and biotech …