Regulators Give Ohio Wind Farm the OK

John Davis

A 98-turbine wind farm in Ohio is moving forward after regulators in that state gave the developers permission to build the project, designed to generate up to 150.4 megawatts of energy.

BrighterEnergy.org reports the Ohio Power Siting Board will allow Houston-based Horizon Wind Energy to build the second phase of its Timber Road wind farm on 15,000 acres leased in Northwest Ohio:

The wind farm is to use either Acciona 1.5MW turbines, GE 1.6MW machines or Vestas 1.8MW turbines, with expectations of generating between 395,000 and 460,000 megawatt-hours of power each year.

The project could see construction starting next month, in a project expected to support 420 construction jobs followed by 43 full-time operations roles.

Horizon, which is developing the project through its Paulding Wind Farm II LLC subsidiary, filed its application with the Board in May for certification to site its Timber Road II Wind farm.

The developers had to agree to several provisions that would lessen the impacts on the environment. The project is seen as being a big step toward Ohio meeting its goal of 25 percent of the state’s electricity from alternative energy sources by 2025, half of which must come from renewable resources.

Wind

Gore Ethanol Comments Generate Industry Response

Cindy Zimmerman

A Reuters report out of Athens today on former Vice President Al Gore’s comments about corn ethanol has generated responses from the U.S. ethanol industry.

According to the article, Gore said, “It is not a good policy to have these massive subsidies for (U.S.) first generation ethanol,” while speaking at a green energy business conference in Athens. He blamed his original support for corn ethanol on his presidential campaign. “One of the reasons I made that mistake is that I paid particular attention to the farmers in my home state of Tennessee, and I had a certain fondness for the farmers in the state of Iowa because I was about to run for president.”

Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis responded to Gore’s reported comments by noting the great success of first generation ethanol. “Earlier this year, we invited former Vice President Al Gore to visit a modern day ethanol plant to see firsthand what America’s grain ethanol industry has done, and what it can do, for our country given greater access to an open market. Our offer still stands.” Buis sent Gore a follow-up letter today.

On the Renewable Fuels Association E-xchange blog, Matt Hartwig said that Gore was right about ethanol the first time. “Now he tells us: Al Gore was for grain ethanol before he was against it,” writes Hartwig. “Gore bemoans “the lobbies that keep it [ethanol] going.” What about Big Oil lobbying for ever-more costly and risky offshore drilling? Gore should stop apologizing for having supported ethanol. He had it right the first time.”

Gore also reportedly said the corn ethanol has a definite impact on food prices, which has been disputed, and that he supports next generation ethanol from non-food feedstocks, which would not be possible without supporting first generation corn ethanol.

The Reuters story is being regurgitated by such news outlets as the Washington Post, FOX News and the Des Moines Register, but an actual transcript of Gore’s remarks has yet to surface.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, Growth Energy, RFA

Gene Find Could Boost Cellulosic Ethanol Production

Cindy Zimmerman

The discovery of a new gene could help in the production of cellulosic ethanol.

purduePurdue University scientists have found the last undiscovered gene responsible for the production of the amino acid phenylalanine, a discovery that could lead to processes to control the amino acid to boost plants’ nutritional values and produce better biofuel feedstocks.

The researchers have determined that the gene is one of ten responsible for phenylalanine production in plants, which is important for plant protein synthesis and for the production of flower scent, anti-oxidants and lignin, a principal plant cell wall component that helps plants stand upright and acts as a barrier in the production of cellulosic ethanol. It is one of the few essential amino acids that humans and animals cannot synthesize, so it must come from plants.

Decreasing phenylalanine could lead to a reduction in lignin, which would improve digestibility of cellulosic materials for ethanol production. Increasing phenylalanine could boost the nutritional value of some foods.

Source: Purdue University press release

Cellulosic, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Research

AFBF: Lame Ducks Could be Pretty Lame for Ethanol, Biodiesel

John Davis

The American Farm Bureau Federation isn’t expecting too much from the lame duck session of Congress, particularly when it comes to renewal of the federal biodiesel and ethanol tax credits.

“I think the lame duck session will be pretty lame,” said Mary Kay Thatcher, Director of Policy at AFBF, during an interview with our own Cindy Zimmerman during the recent National Association of Farm Broadcasters Trade Talk session in Kansas City, Mo.

While she says members of Congress will kick the budget to the next Congress coming in after the first of the year by passing a continuing resolution and will at least temporarily extend some of the Bush tax cuts before they expire on January 1st, she’s not as optimistic about the green fuels’ chances.

“I hope we add on ethanol and biodiesel as part of [those expiring credits], [but] I’m probably less optimistic that happens than I am the others because of the economy. But I think we can get those [biodiesel and ethanol] credits extended. It’ll be short term … six months, maybe a year … and then the new Congress will have to figure out where do you get the money to pay for that stuff.”

Thatcher says the biofuels tax credits will be a big topic of discussion when the AFBF holds its 92nd Annual Meeting, Jan. 9-12, 2011 in Atlanta, Georgia … just as the new Congress comes into session in Washington. She admits the ethanol tax credit could end up taking a hit from some of the new fiscal hawks elected this year. Thatcher does believe that farmers and biofuel producers will be helped by the fact that Republicans have taken control of Congress, and thus, taken control of the purse strings of the Environmental Protection Agency and other agencies that have put up roadblocks. And that could ease some of the restrictions the government has put on the two industries in the past few years.

Listen to more of Cindy’s interview with Mary Kay here: Mary Kay Thatcher, AFBF

Biodiesel, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Legislation, News

Eagles to Soar on Wind, Solar Power

John Davis

Right now, the Philadelphia Eagles are sitting atop their division in the NFL and have to have what’s considered one of the better feel-good stories in pro football with the comeback of Michael Vick (we can debate his merits and whether he was deserving of another chance in some other venue). But the Eagles might be putting up their biggest win of the season with their announcement that onsite wind and solar power generation will play a major role in powering Lincoln Financial Field, becoming the world’s first major sports stadium to convert to self-generated renewable energy:

The Eagles have contracted with Orlando FL-based SolarBlue, a renewable energy and energy conservation company, to install approximately 80 20-foot spiral-shaped wind turbines [shown on right] on the top rim of the stadium, affix 2,500 solar panels on the stadium’s façade, build a 7.6 megawatt onsite dual-fuel cogeneration plant and implement sophisticated monitoring and switching technology to operate the system.

Over the next year, SolarBlue will invest in excess of $30 million to build out the system, with a completion goal of September 2011. SolarBlue will maintain and operate the stadium’s power system for the next 20 years at a fixed percent annual price increase in electricity, saving the Eagles an estimated $60 million in energy costs.

The Eagles and SolarBlue estimate that over the 20-year horizon, the on-site energy sources at Lincoln Financial Field will provide 1.039 billion kilowatt hours of electricity — more than enough to supply the stadium’s power needs — enabling an estimated four megawatts of excess energy off-peak to be sold back to the local electric grid.

“The Philadelphia Eagles are proud to take this vital step towards energy independence from fossil fuels by powering Lincoln Financial Field with wind, solar and dual-fuel energy sources,” said team owner and chief executive officer, Jeffrey Lurie. “This commitment builds upon our comprehensive environmental sustainability program, which includes energy and water conservation, waste reduction, recycling, composting, toxic chemical avoidance and reforestation. It underscores our strong belief that environmentally sensitive policies are consistent with sound business practices.”

Team officials say the amount of renewable energy generated each year will be equal to what 26,000 homes go through in electricity annually and remove the same amount of carbon from the air equaling 41,000 cars.

Solar, Wind

USDA Loan Guarantee Funds Hawaiian Biodiesel Turbine

John Davis

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has guaranteed a $110 million loan for a Hawaiian utility cooperative that has biodiesel as part of its power generation efforts.

BusinessWeek reports the Kauai Island Utility Cooperative received the federal guarantee:

[T]he guarantee includes nearly $73 million for hydroelectric plant improvements and a 10-megawatt naphtha/biodiesel fueled combustion turbine.

[Hawaii’s Sen. Daniel] Inouye says the funds will help Kauai further harness the power of water and biofuel as part of the effort to lessen Kauai County’s dependence on imported fossil fuels.

[Sen. Daniel] Akaka says the homegrown energy sources keep dollars in Hawaii while reducing air, land and water pollution.

Biodiesel, USDA

Biomass Diesel Featured at Green Cars LA Auto Show

John Davis

A biomass-based synthetic diesel is being featured at the Green Cars LA Auto Show Ride & Drive event.

Rentech, Inc. says its synthetic RenDiesel(R) fuel is powering an Audi A3 TDI, coming on the heels of the recent four-day, 1,000 mile endurance drive that is part of the 2010 Green Car of the Year Tour:

During [last month’s] drive, the Audi A3 TDI averaged 43 mpg on RenDiesel fuel, which is greater than the EPA average highway fuel economy rating for that car. The RenDiesel fuel used on the drive was produced from natural gas and can also be made from biomass. The renewable RenDiesel fuel to be produced from biomass using Rentech-SilvaGas gasification technology at Rentech’s Rialto Renewable Energy Center is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions on a lifecycle basis by as much as 97% over conventional diesel fuel and by a comparable amount over electric vehicles. A vehicle using RenDiesel fuel is also expected to be as much as two times more fuel efficient than one running on ethanol. RenDiesel fuel contains approximately 60% more energy per gallon than ethanol and diesel engines typically achieve 20-40% more miles per gallon than gasoline engines. RenDiesel fuel also produces fewer volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions than ethanol or traditional diesel and has lower tailpipe emissions compared to traditional diesel.

Rentech’s Rialto Renewable Energy Center is expected to produce about 640 barrels per day of renewable synthetic fuels, primarily RenDiesel fuel, and approximately 35 MW of renewable electric power (RenPower) from urban green waste diverted from landfills.

biomass

Will The Lame Duck Session Create Mad Ducks?

Joanna Schroeder

DomesticFuel reporter Chuck Zimmerman recently had the opportunity to sit down with Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis and get an update on the state of the industry. This week, the lame duck session kicked off and this is a very important session for the biofuels industry as they are facing the expiration of several important tax provisions.

“We’re hoping the lame duck session becomes a productive session. Sometimes they are. Sometimes they aren’t,” said Buis. “Unfortunately, lame ducks create mad ducks and that sometimes prohibits them from working cooperatively together.”

Buis continued, “We’ve seen partisan gridlock in Washington for too long. We have some timely issues that are going to be a big deal to our industry and others that need to be addressed by the end of the year.”

Some of these issues include the potential end of the ethanol tax credit, VEETC, the small producer tax credit, and the ethanol tariff.

“Sometimes in lame ducks when you switch power from one party to the other the incoming party says we’d rather wait until January so we can control how these issues are dealt with,” said Buis. Well, that has consequences if they take that avenue and I’m hoping they don’t.”

Growth Energy would like to have an opportunity to take a bigger, broader look at where the industry is going and Buis feels that with the industry’s support, they are well on their way. But he cautions that for change to happen, you can’t allow the current programs to expire before the new programs are in place.

You can hear more about the state of the ethanol industry in Chuck’s full interview with Tom Buis. Ethanol State of the Industry

Audio, biofuels, Ethanol, Growth Energy

Scoop Up Some Holiday Cash

Joanna Schroeder

Scoop up some extra cash for the holiday season by filling out the DomesticFuel Survey. By participating in our fast, easy quick 5 minute survey, you could win $250 to spend on yourself or to help spread the joy to your friends and family.

Here’s all you need to do. Click on this link to complete the survey that will help the blogging team bring you more stories that are of interest to you. Once you’ve answered all the questions, enter to win $250 in cash. Each month, one winner will be chosen  from all of the survey’s entrants. Non winners will be put into the drawing for the next month so there is no need to fill out the survey multiple times.

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Miscellaneous

Ethanol Report on California LCFS

Cindy Zimmerman

Ethanol Report PodcastThe California Air Resources Board (CARB) has decided to use the latest research on indirect land use change (ILUC) for implementing the state’s Low Carbon Fuels Standard (LCFS), meaning the current ILUC penalty for corn ethanol likely will be cut by at least half by the spring of 2011. The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) says the resolution is good news for the ethanol industry, but expressed concerns about waiting until after the standard is implemented in January to make the revisions.

RFA Vice President for Research Geoff Cooper talks about the decision and its impact in this edition of “The Ethanol Report.”

Listen to the Ethanol Report here: Ethanol Report on California LCFS

Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Ethanol Report, RFA