Novozymes & Lignol to Develop Ethanol From Wood

Joanna Schroeder

Novozymes announced this morning that they have signed a research and development agreement to make biofuel from wood chips and other forestry residues with Lignol Energy Corporation. The goal of the partnership is to develop a process for making biofuel from forestry waste at a production cost less than $2 per gallon making it economically competitive with current gasoline and corn ethanol market prices.

“Novozymes’ goal is to enable commercial production of cellulosic biofuel from a wide range of feedstocks,” says Claus Crone Fuglsang, Senior Director of BioEnergy R&D in Novozymes. “Our enzymes have the unique ability to turn wood residues and plant waste into fuel for our cars. Lignol is an industry frontrunner and our work together over the past couple of years has reinforced a shared vision to produce energy and value from wood waste. We look forward to continued improvement under this partnership.”

This past February, Novozymes released an enzyme that enables commercial production of biofuel from plant waste. The enzyme converts cellulose in biomass into sugars that can then be fermented into ethanol. Lignol has developed a pre-treatment technology that prepares the wood prior to the introduction of the enzymes. The two will use Lignol’s pilot plant in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada for the research and development of this cellulosic technology.

Lignol President and CEO Ross MacLachlan concluded, “The progress we have achieved to date with enzymes from Novozymes is extremely promising and a successful outcome of this collaboration should position us to produce cellulosic ethanol from woody biomass profitably and without the need for long term government subsidies.”

Cellulosic, Ethanol, Ethanol News

RFA President Addresses Ethanol Gathering

Cindy Zimmerman

FEW 2010As he has done for many years, Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Bob Dinneen addressed the world’s largest gathering of ethanol producers at the opening of the general session for the 2010 Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo in St. Louis on Tuesday.

“We meet here today as an environmental catastrophe continues to unfold in the Gulf of Mexico. The economic and environmental cost of which is simply unimaginable,” said Dinneen. “More than ever before, now is the time to embrace the entrepreneurial spirit and ingenuity of America’s heartland and break our addiction to oil; now must be the time to seize control of our energy future. That future begins with the expertise and the creativity of the people in this room.”

Dinneen addressed the immediate concerns facing the ethanol industry, increasing the blend rate to 15 percent and renewing the tax incentives set to expire at the end of the year, and expressed optimism that both will yet be accomplished as long as the industry works together.

“The issues we must confront cannot be solved with press releases or a speech at an ethanol conference. In order to ensure the long term viability of this industry and those members of this industry to come, we must not shy away from hard work,” said Dinneen. “Let’s get to work.”

Listen to or download Dinneen’s speech in the player below and check out photos from FEW on Flickr.

Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, FEW, RFA

Team Ethanol is Back on the Track

Joanna Schroeder

There was some big news announced during the Fuel Ethanol Workshop (FEW) – Team Ethanol is back. Dave Vander Griend, the founder of ICM and one of the three original sponsors of the Team Ethanol IndyCar program, delivered the news that Team Ethanol will be back on the track for the first time in nearly two years at the upcoming Iowa Corn Indy 250 on Sunday, June 20th. Ryan Hunter-Reay will be returning as the driver, as part of Andretti Green Racing.

I asked Dave how the return of Team Ethanol came to be and he explained, “We thought this is an excellent opportunity to showcase the fact that fuel ethanol is also biodegradable.” He continued, “Some of the things that are happening here in the Gulf Coast and some of the issues surrounding this oil spill would not be as severe if there was a higher use of ethanol and a lower use of non biodegradable fuel in our tanks.”

Team Ethanol was a successful tool in creating awareness about higher blends of ethanol for many years. With the move to approve the option for consumers to choose higher blends at the pump, such as E15, the program demonstrates the incredible performance levels cars can achieve when using high blends of ethanol. The IndyCar Series uses 100 perfect fuel-grade ethanol.

Vander Griend said the program will bring more awareness to the public that ethanol is a good fuel. Andretti Green has four drivers, three of which are American and have a stake in what happens to our coastlines, explained Vander Griend,who also noted that they will be good spokespersons for ethanol.

ICM is a title sponsor of the Iowa Corn Indy 250 and will be a supporting sponsor through the remainder of the season. They are also hoping to raise sponsorship dollars so that Team Ethanol can compete in several more races this season.

Vander Griend concluded that the best thing about the renewable fuels industry is that they produce fuel year after year and the money stays in America. “When we spend our money on foreign oil, we use the oil up, burn it in our cars, the fuel’s gone. The money’s gone. With renewables, the fuel may also be gone but we still have the money. And that is probably the most important thing if we want to revitalize our economy.”

You can listen to my interview with Dave below and check out photos from FEW 2010 in our Flickr photo album.

Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, FEW, IA Corn Indy, Indy Racing, Video

26th Annual Fuel Ethanol Workshop Underway

Cindy Zimmerman

FEW 2010The 26th Annual Fuel Ethanol Workshop and Expo is officially underway and the mood is much more upbeat than it was last year.

FEW 2010“The industry has been through a couple of very difficult years,” said Mike Bryan, Chairman of BBI International, which sponsors the event. “So, we’re really glad to see the industry coming back, getting revitalized. We’re kind of sticking our heads out of the foxhole again and looking around on the horizon and so that’s very encouraging.”

Bryan says there are about 2200 attendees this year and 386 exhibitors, with 25 percent of those in attendance actual ethanol producers, making it the largest gathering of producers in the world.

FEW 2010One person not here this year who is sorely missed is Mike’s wife, Kathy Bryan, who passed away in July of last year after a valiant battle with cancer. “She actually started the Fuel Ethanol Workshop 26 years ago, this was her baby right from the beginning,” Bryan says proudly. To honor her memory, they are selling commemorative beer mugs to fund ethanol industry scholarships. “She started the scholarship a number of years ago and it was very dear to her heart to provide an opportunity for young people to get into the ethanol industry,” said Bryan. Already they have sold enough of the mugs to fund two $2,000 scholarships!

Listen to my interview with Mike Bryan in the player below, and check out photos from FEW 2010 in our Flickr photo album.

Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, FEW

Ribbon Cutting Opens Fuel Ethanol Workshop

Cindy Zimmerman

The ribbon cutting ceremony to open the 2010 Fuel Ethanol Workshop was short and sweet, with a welcome from BBI International Vice President Tom Bryan and Chairman Mike Bryan, greetings from welcome reception sponsor Growth Energy, and a special announcement about the return of the Ethanol Car to the Indy series by ICM’s Dave Vander Griend. It all took about 5:00 and you can watch it here on YouTube.

Ethanol, FEW

Growth Energy Sponsors Ethanol Expo Open

Cindy Zimmerman

FEW 2010Ethanol producer group Growth Energy sponsored the grand opening of the 2010 Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo on Monday in St. Louis.

FEW organizer Mike Bryan introduced Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis, who said a few words of welcome to the crowd gathered around for the ribbon cutting to kick off the 26th annual event. “We all know we have tremendous challenges facing this industry and we all want to work really hard so that the industry continues to grow, we reduce our dependence on foreign oil, improve the environment and create jobs right here at home,” said Buis.

FEW 2010After the expo opened, Growth Energy co-chairman Gen. Wesley Clark gave a rouse the troops speech to the ethanol producers on the trade show floor, stressing the importance of domestically produced ethanol for our energy security. “There’s no point for America in getting hooked on somebody else’s liquid fuel when we can grow it right here ourselves,” said Clark. He noted that Brazil has agreed to sell ethanol to Iran, which he says is crossing the line. “I am just so proud of America’s agricultural community and what we’re doing here at home. How could we as a nation not want to maximize what we can do with our own land? Why would we want to outsource that to someone else?”

Listen to back to back interviews with Buis and Clark in the player below.

2010 Fuel Ethanol Workshop Photo Album

Audio, Ethanol, FEW, Growth Energy

East Coast States Form Offshore Wind Consortium

John Davis

A group of 10 states along the U.S. East Coast have signed an agreement with the the Department of the Interior to form the Atlantic Offshore Wind Energy Consortium.

CalFinder.com says the group will also promote solar and biomass power:

Federal approval of Cape Wind, the United States’ first offshore wind farm near Cape Cod, essentially gave offshore wind the green light up and down the nation’s coasts. This agreement by the DOI and 10 East Coast states essentially assures us that wind energy will be developed in abundance with the full support of federal and regional governments.

The 10 states to sign the memo are: Delaware, Maine, Maryland, New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, Rhode Island and Virginia. Six states also formed intergovernmental “leasing task forces” to develop and facilitate leases for private companies to build offshore wind farms. Florida and South Carolina did not sign the memo, but are developing leasing task forces as well. Apparently, Georgia is cooperating in some way, shape or form.

The efforts are expected to help create green jobs in construction, operation and manufacturing of renewable energy systems in the region. In fact, the Department of the Interior has set up a renewable energy office in Virginia to help coordinate the efforts.

biomass, Solar, Wind

Natural Gas Becoming Mainstream Fuel

John Davis

A trend in Canada that shows natural gas moving from a niche fuel to the mainstream might be an indication of a more prevalent direction for that fuel worldwide.

This article from the Globe and Mail (thanks to @pickensplan on Twitter for the tip!) says environmental benefits, plentiful supplies and low costs are helping improve natural gas’ prospects:

For natural gas to become a major player in powering vehicles, companies and governments need to commit big dollars to infrastructure and technology. In some parts of North America, that commitment is under way.

In Quebec, Robert Transport is among the early adopters in Canada. The large trucking company, based in Boucherville, has a fleet of 750 trucks and plans to buy 80 new rigs with natural gas engines, with the first rigs arriving early next year.

Fuelling stations are a crucial part of the needed infrastructure, and remain a significant challenge. Robert Transport plans to build three for itself along the Montreal-Toronto corridor, in a partnership with Gaz Métro LP.

Natural gas emits fewer greenhouse gases compared with diesel refined from crude oil. Beyond the environmental benefits, the cheaper cost of gas compared with diesel was the big factor in the decision, said Daniel St-Germain, vice-president of asset management at Robert Transport.

“The economic aspect is very important,” Mr. St-Germain said.

The article also points to Beijing Olympics in 2008 and the Port of Los Angeles as great examples of how natural gas is helping places all over the world go green. In addition, some companies are telling investors and analysts that this could be the year that is the tipping point for a favorable natural gas future.

Natural Gas

USDA Nears Finish of Biomass Crop Assistance Rules

John Davis

USDA officials say they are close to finalizing the rules for the Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP), a measure that was in the 2008 Farm Bill and is designed to encourage farmers to grow new crops for energy production. But there’s still some work to do before it is finally implemented.

“We have put out a proposed rule, received over 24,000 comments, we’ve evaluated those comments and are in the process of then working on writing the final rule based on the proposed rule and the comments we got,” says Jonathan Coppess, Administrator of the USDA’s Farm Service Agency. Plus, he says the ag department will need to do an environmental impact statement.

Coppess says there two main provisions in BCAP: 1. the assistance for establishment provision, that has the federal government reimbursing farmers for 75 percent of the costs of establishing a new biomass crop; and 2. matching payments for the collection, harvesting, storage and transportation of biomass products.

The rule should be ready by this fall, however, there is one more hurdle to clear. Congress still has 60 days to comment.

biomass

Connecticut Gov Signs Biodiesel Heating Oil Mandate

John Davis

Connecticut Yankees (and any other immigrants to the Nutmeg State) will be able to stay warm … and green … in winters in the future, thanks to biodiesel.

That state’s Governor Jodi Rell has signed into law a 2 percent biodiesel in heating oil mandate that kicks in next summer. However, Heatingoil.com reports it does have some conditions attached:

Although the governor’s signature officially made the mandates the law of the state, a provision in the bill holds off final implementation of the requirements until Massachusetts, New York and Rhode Island pass similar legislation. Massachusetts already has a 2 percent biodiesel requirement on the books, and mandate proposals are in the works in the New York and Rhode Island state legislatures.

Heating oil and petroleum association officials say the legislation will save money for consumers, while reducing greenhouse emissions by more than 40 percent and adding jobs to the state’s biofuels industry.

Biodiesel, Government, Legislation