It’s an issue we’ve talked about before … plenty of ethanol and biodiesel and vehicles that can burn the green fuels but not enough infrastructure to support those cars’ and trucks’ needs. But a little help from the government is changing that in one of the largest concentrations of privately-owned vehicles … and incidently, one of the largest concentrations of …
Republican Takeover Could Signal Change for Biofuels
If Republicans take control of Congress in the upcoming November election, we could see a shift back to making renewable energy a priority. In this Biofuels Digest article, Brent Erickson, executive vice president for the Biotechnology Industry Organization’s (BIO) Industrial and Environmental Section, says he has been disappointed in President Obama’s and Democratic leadership in Congress’ lack of interest in …
Friends of the Earth: Africa up for Grabs
Friends of the Earth International (FOE) has released a report about Africa’s move to produce biofuels to help meet the global needs of renewable energy. “Africa, up for grabs: the scale and impact of land grabbing for agrofuels” looked at 11 African countries and found that five million hectares of land, or an area the size of Denmark, is being …
Propel Sends Out a Thank You to Its Customers
Propel is taking a leadership role in California and Washington in bringing biofuels such as ethanol and biodiesel to drivers. Earlier this month, Propel opened a new E85 station in Oakland, California, just one of nearly two dozen planned for the Bay area. Also this summer, Propel received an $11 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy and the …
Algae Assoc. Conference to Focus on Commercial Scale
The National Algae Association (NAA) will be holding its national conference next week, and the focus of the gathering will be on commercial scale production of the green microbes. NAA officials say at the Sept. 23-24 conference at the Sheraton North Houston near George Bush Intercontinental Airport, they will be working on the premise that algae will be delivering on …
Solazyme Inks Deal to Provide Algal Biofuel to Navy
Our friends at Solazyme, Inc. have inked a new deal with the U.S. Navy to provide 150,000 gallons of advanced biofuels made from algae. This post on BrighterEnergy.org says the San Francisco supplier of the green fuel has already delivered more than 20,000 gallons of its biodiesel to the Navy from its 2009 contract: The company hailed the achievement as …
Biodiesel Incentive Shot Down Again; Dem Calls it “Stunt”
The federal $1-a-gallon biodiesel tax credit failed to move forward yet again today, as one of the top Democrats in the U.S. Senate dismissed the effort as a “stunt.” The Senate defeated Sen. Charles Grassley’s (R-IA, pictured on right) attempt to retroactively revive the credit as part of a small business bill by a vote of 41-58… far short of …
Renewable Fuels Awareness Month in Nebraska
Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman visited Husker Harvest Days in Grand Island Wednesday to proclaim September as Renewable Fuels Awareness Month in Nebraska. Joined by representatives of the Nebraska Corn and Soybean Boards, Gov. Heineman said that renewable fuels are a critical component of energy independence and energy security, while providing economic growth and vitality in the state. “Nebraska is one …
Biodiesel Focus of Diesel Tech Forum Webinar
If you’re reading this before 10 am EST today, there’s still time to get in on the free Diesel Technology Forum that will feature plenty of talk about biodiesel: Biodiesel usage has grown significantly in recent years and many states are considering legislation or programs to promote renewable fuels as a means of reducing U.S. dependence on fossil fuels. As …
Company Studies Grease-to-Biodiesel Feasibility
A Missouri company is looking into the feasibility of turning fat, oil and grease (FOG) in urban sewers into clean-burning biodiesel. Biodiesel magazine reports that H2O’C Engineering’s study is funded by $50,000 from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources: The study will focus collecting FOG from two Missouri metropolitan areas, Kansas City and St. Louis. “We are looking at what …