Ormat has announced the successful completion of the 100 MW installed capacity Ngatamariki geothermal power plant in New Zealand. Mighty River Power’s modular Ngatamariki geothermal power plant is the largest singular binary power plant ever constructed. The Ormat Energy Converters are directly fed by a high temperature (380°F / 193 ºC) geothermal fluid. Until now, on such resources, only steam …
Rothes II Wind Farm in Scotland Powers Up
Fred. Olsen Renewables (FOR) has announced that the Rothes II Wind Farm in Scotland has commenced operation. The wind farm has an installed operational capacity of 41.4 MW, equivalent to generating enough electricity to power over 20,500 homes. The project is located adjacent to the existing Rothes Wind Farm, 20km south west of Elgin and consists of 18 x Siemens …
GRFA: Leave RED Alone
The European Parliament will begin its fall session soon, and the Global Renewable Fuels Alliance (GRFA) is calling on the members to vote against any changes to the Renewable Energy Directive (RED). GRFA says the proposed changes are based on unproven theories and will restrict the biofuel industry’s critical access to transportation fuel markets, negatively impacting the economy and environment. …
US Biodiesel Imports Up, But So Are Exports
U.S. imports of biodiesel and biomass-based renewable diesel came in at 28.6 million gallons during June, a spike of more than 12 million gallons from May. Biodiesel Magazine reports that while the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) numbers show a lot more is coming in, the amount going out is also up, hitting 24.6 million gallons of exports in biomass-based …
Straw for Renewable Diesel Explored
A group of Finnish companies are looking into turning straw into renewable diesel. This news release from Neste Oil says the company has teamed up with Raisioagro and TTS to study the feasibility of a large-scale straw harvesting chain to make the green fuel. Microbial oil technology developed by Neste Oil enables straw to be used as a feedstock for …
World Biodiesel Production Seen to Rise
Worldwide biodiesel production is expected to rise to 24.7 million metric tons this year. This article from Bloomberg says Germany’s Oil World says the rise will be fed by more use of soybean oil, already the leading biodiesel feedstock, and the spike in petroleum oil prices. Biodiesel output will increase 6.3 percent in 2013 compared with a 5.8 percent rise …
New Biodiesel Refinery to be Built in Philippines
A new biodiesel refinery is planned for the Philippines. This story from Biofuels International says oil company TWA will build the 7-million-gallon-a-year facility. ‘The Philippine Coconut Authority has said there are enough local raw materials for both local and foreign commitments. They are just waiting for the National Biodiesel Board to make the call on a higher blend requirement,’ TWA …
Mexico Looks to Build Biodiesel Plant
Scientists in Mexico want to build a biodiesel plant that would provide fuel for Mexico City’s public transit. This story in the Latin American Herald Tribune says the the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) plan is to use waste cooking oil from restaurants and hotels and could supply more than 500 gallons a day. A School of Engineering lab …
Hyrdogenics’ Power-to-Gas Facility Begins Operations
Hydrogenics Corporation has announced that its E.ON inaugurated commercial operations has begun at its Power-to-Gas (P2G) facility in Falkenhagen, Germany. The plant uses wind power and Hydrogenics’ electrolysis equipment to transform water into hydrogen, which is then injected into the existing regional natural gas transmission system. The hydrogen, as part of the natural gas mix, can be used in a …
Brazil Sugarcane Harvest Strong
The volume of cane sugar produced by mills in the South-Central region of Brazil reached 46.34 million tons in the first 15 days of August, up 4.72 percent compared to value recorded in the same half of the previous year (44.25 million tons). Since the harvest began, crushing has totaled 315.10 million tons, an increase of 20.68 percent compared to …