REG Adds Bioheat & Biodiesel Sales Manager

Joanna Schroeder

Paul Predaris has joined Renewable Energy Group (REG) as the company’s new Biodiesel Sales Manager. In his role, he will oversee the company’s Bioheat development of the biodiesel market in the Northeastern United States. This part of the country is rapidly adopting Bioheat for home heating and Predaris will closely work with home heating oil and petroleum distributors as well …

Biodiesel, biofuels, Company Announcement

ICM Enters Into Partnership With EISENMANN

Joanna Schroeder

ICM has announced that it has entered into a technological partnership to couple its gasification system with EISENMANN Corporation’s dual-field wet electrostatic precipitation (WESP) technology. This technology was proven successful at ICM’s commercial-scale demonstration gasifier located adjacent to the Harvey County municipal solid waste transfer and recycling facility in Newton, Kansas. The gasifier underwent several performance tests with multiple feedstocks …

bioenergy, Company Announcement, Waste-to-Energy

Court Date Set in GreenShift Patent Infringment Case

Joanna Schroeder

A court date has been set for August 22 with Judge Larry McKinney in the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of Indiana to hear arguments in the consolidated GreenShift patent infringement case. Fifteen ethanol plants have been named in the suit as well as several other companies including ICM, GEA Westfalia Separator, GEA Mechanical, and Flottweg Separation Technology. …

Company Announcement, Ethanol

Butamax Awarded Patent

Joanna Schroeder

Butamax has been granted another patent – number 7,993,889. This patent protects foundational methods for low-cost production of biobutanol. Currently, Butamax has over a hundred patent applications pending in addition to those already granted and several of the applications are under accelerated review in the USPTO Green Technology Pilot Program. The company says its intellectual property encompasses advances in technology …

biobutanol, biofuels, Company Announcement

POET Biorefining – Caro Receives Green Honor

Joanna Schroeder

POET Biorefining – Caro has received the 2011 Green Agri-Business Designation from the Michigan Agri-Business Association. The ethanol plant received the award for its efforts to integrate environmental practices into its operations. The award focuses on efforts by companies to protect Michigan’s natural resources, conserve energy and reduce impact on water land and air. “The Michigan Agri-Business Association wants to …

Company Announcement, Environment, Ethanol, water

Peter Matrai Joins Butamax as COO

Joanna Schroeder

Peter Matrai has joined Butamax Advanced Biofuels as the company’s new Chief Operating Officer (COO). He will be responsible for the development and implementation of Butamax strategy and business plan. He will also be in charge of leading the company’s global commercial team which is currently engaged in activities in the U.S., Brazil, Europe and Asia. Prior to joining Butamax, …

biobutanol, biofuels, Company Announcement

Amyris Partners with Kuraray

Joanna Schroeder

Amyris is now partnering with Kuraray Co. to develop innovative polymers from Biofene, a renewable hydrocarbon building block that is produced from their technology. As part of the partnership, Kuraray will use Biofene to replace petroleum-derived feedstock such as butadiene and isoprene in the production of certain polymers. Upon the success of the product, the two companies will then enter …

biochemicals, Company Announcement

Paul Beckwith Takes the Reigns at Butamax

Joanna Schroeder

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 …

biobutanol, biofuels, Company Announcement

Green Plains Builds Business

Joanna Schroeder

Green Plains Renewable Energy announced today its acquisition of a grain storage facility located in Hopkins, Missouri. The grain storage facility can house up to 2 million bushels of grain and was formerly owned by Horizon Grain of Hopkins, Inc and GS Grain LLC. The grain elevator is located about 45 minutes from Green Plains’ ethanol biorefinery in Shenandoah, Iowa. …

Company Announcement, corn, Ethanol

Principal Solar Acquires Capstone Solar

Joanna Schroeder

Principal Solar, Inc. (PSI) has announced its acquisition of Capstone Solar, a news and networking site geared to solar professionals. Terms were not disclosed but Principal Solar said the deal fits within their unique company solar strategy. Capstone Co-Founder Dan Bedell said it is great to find a group of people so committed to the advancement of solar power as …

Company Announcement, Solar