Butamax announced today the changing of the guards with Paul Beckwith taking over the reigns as CEO. Beckwith will be leading the company into its next phase of commercial development in biobutanol. He succeeds Tim Potter, who served as CEO for Butamax during the company’s start-up phase that began in 2009. Butmax is a partnership between DuPont and BP and …
Elsevier Biofuel Launched to Guide Innovation
A new tool is now available for biofuel managers and research development professionals to help solve innovation challenges. Elsevier Biofuels is an unique online search and discovery tool that gives companies access to the highest level of scientific, industrial and commercial information that can be utilized by companies to assist them in solving problems or make key decisions. “BioEnergy RD&D …
Buses in São Paulo to Use Sugarcane Diesel
Sugarcane is not just for ethanol. Amryis Brasil S.A., the Brazilian arm of Amyris, has announced that it will be supplying 160 city buses in São Paulo with its Diesel de Cana, or renewable diesel produced from sugarcane. Beginning this August and expiring at the end of 2012, buses operated by the Viação Santa Brígida will run on a blend …
Lufthansa to Begin Commerical BioJet Fuel Flights
On Friday, July 15th, Lufthansa flew using a biofuel blend produced by Neste Oil. The NExBTL renewable aviation fuel was such a resounding success that now Airbus A321 Lufthansa-operated flights flying between Hamburg and Frankfurt will use this fuel, in both directions four times a day. One engine will run on a 50-50 NExBTL/fossil fuel blend while the other engine …
Eco-Car Fueled by Cellulosic Ethanol Sets Record
Cellulosic ethanol has achieved a victory. The Dynamo, a concept car created by a student team called the Roadrunners, and fueled by ethanol made from straw, won the Urban Concepts class of the 2011 Shell eco-marathon in Europe. In tandem to the win, the car set a new miles per gallon record of 1,197 (509 km/1) when adjusted for energy …
Diversifying The Ethanol Industry With Biodiesel
An ethanol plant that stops looking for ways to diversify its business and improve its profits is an ethanol plant that will drown faster in bad weather. A new option for the ethanol industry to diversify is to add a biodiesel plant to the end of its corn oil extraction technology. This idea lends itself one step closer to a …
DFCast: Biofuels Take Flight
In the past few months, biofuels have taken to the skies with a multitude of successful flights conducted by both the military and the commercial airline industry. This news has been even more welcome with the achievements taking place during the aftermath of the Rand report predicting that aviation biofuels would not play a role in the next few decades. …
REG Files for IPO
The largest biodiesel company in the U.S., Renewable Energy Group, has filed its registration statement for an initial public offering. The number of shares to be offered and the price range for the offering have not yet been determined. UBS Securities LLC and Piper Jaffray & Co will be acting as joint book-running managers for the IPO. In addition, Stifel, …
Louisiana Moves Forward On Sugar-to-Ethanol Plant
Louisiana is one step closer to being the first state in the U.S. to boast a sugar-to-ethanol plant. The Louisiana Public Facilities Authority Board of Trustees has approved bonds worth up to $70 million to help build the plant in Lacassine. The plant is a project of Louisiana Green Fuels (LGF) and is 80 percent owned by Andino Energy and …
Grain Production Not Keeping Up With Demand
According to Purdue University agricultural economist Chris Hurt, grain crops are being “gobbled up” faster than farmers can grow them. This could lead to trouble down the road if production doesn’t catch up. Hurt says there have been two major demands surges on commodities in the past five years. One is the rising use of corn for ethanol production being …