An Israel-based company has completed three years of field trials turning the oil from castor seeds into a biodiesel feedstock and other uses. Evogene Ltd. announced its wholly owned subsidiary, Evofuel Ltd., finished the testing in Brazil: The field trials, which were conducted in cooperation with SLC Agrícola S.A., one of Brazil’s largest landowners and leading agriculture businesses, demonstrated strong …
Tanzania to Transform Energy Sector
The Republic of Tanzania is set to transform its energy sector. The country received an endorsement from Climate Investment Funds (CIF) of an investment plan which will help the country to scale-up the development of its renewable energy resources. The plan is designed to transform the country’s energy sector, shifting from its increasing dependence on fossil fuels and climate-sensitive hydro …
Emotions Mixed on EU Biofuels Vote
There are very mixed emotions with the European Union’s (EU) vote on the biofuels and indirect land use change (ILUC) that took place earlier this week. The EU voted for 6 percent cap. In October of 2012, MEPs (Members of the European Parliament) were voting to cap the amount of land-based and food-based biofuels used in transport fuel. In October, …
Incbio to Equip North African Biodiesel Plant
Portugal’s biggest supplier of biodiesel equipment will soon be outfitting a new biodiesel refinery in North Africa. Incbio signed a deal with Biokast Energy S.A, to supply a soon-to-be-built 8,000MT per year biodiesel plant in Tunis, Tunisia. [The new facility will use] Incbio’s ultrasonic reactors to produce EN14214 Biodiesel from Used Cooking Oil (UCO), collected from restaurants in Tunis. This …
Europe Votes to Limit Crop-based Biofuels
Biofuel makers in Europe could be facing a real uphill battle, as the European Parliament votes to limit the amount of green fuels made from crops in transportation. Bloomberg reports the 6 percent limit on the use of crop-based biofuels comes from concerns about indirect land use change. The vote … in Strasbourg, France, sets the stage for talks among …
Biodiesel Feedstock Plantation Certified Sustainable
One of Cargill’s palm oil plantations in Indonesia used for providing a feedstock for biodiesel is certified as a sustainable operation. The company announced the PT Harapan Sawit Lestari (HSL) plantation was awarded the certification under the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) standards in the European Union (EU). ISCC is a certification scheme that promotes responsible farming by allowing …
Argentinean Biofuels Production
Argentina ranks third behind the United States and Brazil in soybean production, but first in the export of soy products, including biodiesel. The International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ) held its annual Congress in Argentina last week and those who attended learned quite a bit about farming and biofuel production in this South American nation. Soybeans are the number one …
Indian Trains to Run on Biodiesel
Trains in India could soon start running on biodiesel. The Business Standard reports that Research Design Standard Organisation (RDSO), the research wing of Indian Railways, will conduct field trials of Jatropha-based biodiesel developed by the Central Salt Marine & Chemical Research Institute. “A few more approvals are required and possibly in next 3-4 months we shall commence the trials on …
ABO Forms Joint Partnership with Japan
The Algae Biomass Organization (ABO) and the Algae Industry Incubation Consortium, Japan (AIIC), a group working to commercialize algae biofuels in Japan, announced a cooperative effort to share algae industry best practices and expertise during the International Symposium on Algal Biomass held in Tokyo, Japan. The AIIC contacted ABO for assistance in bringing together global algae expertise as part of …
Lignol Energy Buying Stake in Dubai Biodiesel Maker
An Australian biodiesel producer is expanding its reach, this time to Dubai on the Arabian Peninsula. Lignol Energy Corp. is paying $3.73 million to acquire 40 percent of Neutral Fuels Parent Company and a 51 percent interest in Neutral Fuels’ Australia and New Zealand biodiesel operation. As you might remember from earlier this summer, Neutral Fuels currently operates two closed-loop …