BP to Focus on Ethanol Only

Joanna Schroeder

jatropha_plantJust when ExxonMobil finally gets into the biofuels game with its announcement of $300 million in funding for Synthetic Genomics, BP quits its biodiesel efforts. BP has extracted itself from a jatropha biofuel project with D1 Oils to focus on production of ethanol in both the United States and Brazil. The company will also pursue the development of advanced  biobutanol in conjunction with DuPont.

D1 Oil has agreed to purchase BP’s 50 percent interest in their joint D1-BP Fuel Crops Ltd. venture which was launched in June 2007. Jatropha has originally been considered a “wonder” crop to produce biofuels, but as of late has been under fire with many calling it the “blunder crop“. It is no wonder that with tightening funding for biofuels the project was unable to find any additional investors.

According to an article today from Bloomberg News, BP spokeswoman Sheila Williams, commented, “To ensure the success of these investments, BP is concentrating new business development in these areas and will no longer be directly involved in the jatropha as a biofuel feedstock.”

BP Alternative Energy has earmarked $8 billion for project investment in the decade through 2015 and $500 million for biofuels research specifically. The company forecasts that biofuels will account for 11 percent to 19 percent of the world’s transport-fuel market by 2030.

In the past year, BP has partnered with several other ethanol companies including Tropical BioEnergia on a sugarcane project, Verenium on a cellulosic ethanol project and Associated British Foods and DuPont on a wheat-based ethanol plant in Hull, northeast England.

Biodiesel, Ethanol, Ethanol News

World Wind Potential Much Higher than Estimates

John Davis

wind_turbineA new study says the potential of wind energy around the world is much higher than what either wind industry groups or government agencies have been estimating.

This story in the New York Times says a Harvard University study shows that the U.S. could end up being the big leader in wind power:

Using data from thousands of meteorological stations, the Harvard team estimated the world wind power potential to be 40 times greater than total current power consumption. A previous study cited in the paper put that multiple at about 7 times.

In the lower 48 states, the potential from wind power is 16 times more than total electricity demand in the United States, the researchers suggested – significantly greater than a 2008 Department of Energy study that projected wind could supply a fifth of all electricity in the country by 2030.

While remote regions of Russia and Canada have the greatest theoretical potential, the Harvard study pointed out that there are real gains to be made in high-emission nations, especially China, which has been rapidly constructing coal plants. “Large-scale development of wind power in China could allow for an 18-fold increase in electricity supply relative to consumption reported for 2005,” the Harvard study said.

The findings are “further validation of what we’ve been saying – that the United States is the Saudi Arabia of wind,” said Michael Goggin, an electricity industry analyst for the American Wind Energy Association.

The authors based their calculations on the deployment of 2.5- to 3-megawatt wind turbines situated either in accessible rural areas that are neither frozen nor forested, or relatively shallow offshore locations. They also used a conservative 20 percent estimate for capacity factor, a measure of how much energy a given turbine actually produces.

Study authors point out that other wind energy forecasts were based on 50- to 80-meter turbines. They say that turbines could be as large as 100 meters and based their estimates on the larger possible generators.

Wind

Fairmont Hotels Making Own Biodiesel

John Davis

fairmontOne of the leaders in lodging is working on becoming a leader in sustainable green energy.

Fairmont Hotels & Resorts has announced that it will be recycling its used kitchen grease into biodiesel to power its hotels worldwide:

As part of the brand’s focus and commitment to sustainability, more than 22 Fairmont locations worldwide are reducing their waste disposal costs and supporting the switch to a cleaner economy by manufacturing used kitchen oils into biodiesel, a domestic and renewable fuel derived from natural oils. No one method or solution is universal and biodiesel initiatives vary by property. At The Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa, the hotel gets the job done by partnering with Yokayo Bio-Fuels, a local biodiesel firm, to gather approximately 150 gallons of kitchen grease each quarter, turning it into tallow or feed. The Fairmont Scottsdale has also teamed up with an outside firm to transform leftover oil into fuel for vineyards and other businesses that rely on diesel, generators, forklifts and cars. The resort collected 1,901 gallons in 2008 and 650 gallons so far in 2009, for a total of 2,551 gallons of grease to date, which in turn has been recycled into biodiesel; enough to supply the annual fuel consumption of approximately five cars. By not discarding the kitchen grease down the drain, other benefits are also realized including fewer clogged pipes and reduced use of harmful chemicals to clear drains and treat wastewater systems.

You can read more about Fairmont’s Green Partnership Program here.

Biodiesel

NAEDA Endorses Green Jobs Waiver

Chuck Zimmerman

North American Equipment Dealers AssociationThe North American Equipment Dealers Association has come out in support of the Green Jobs Waiver. Mike Williams, VP of Government Relations for NAEDA along with Tom Buis, CEO of Growth Energy, held a media conference call today to discuss the endorsement.

In June, NAEDA endorsed the waiver through comments submitted to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). “We believe increasing the amount of ethanol produced and used will create green jobs, provide environmental benefits, help reduce our dependence on foreign oil and enhance the quality of life in rural America through development of our natural resources,” Williams wrote to the EPA.

Earlier this year, Growth Energy submitted on behalf of 54 ethanol producers a waiver to the EPA asking it to lift the decades-old, arbitrary limit on the amount of ethanol blended into gasoline from 10 percent (E10) up to 15 percent (E15). The U.S. EPA public comment period for the Green Jobs Waiver ends Monday, July 20.

Ethanol, Government, Growth Energy, Legislation

Biodiesel Cop Car Maker Picks Three Factory Finalists

John Davis

carbone7A car maker that plans to build the world’s first police car designed from the ground up specifically for law enforcement officers and that will happen run on biodiesel has narrowed its choices to three states for its factory.

This press release from Carbon Motors Corporation, a new homeland security company, says Georgia, Indiana and South Carolina are finalists for the plant that is expected to create 10,000 new direct and indirect American jobs and make a $3 billion positive economic impact on the selected region over the next ten years:

“We are honored and tremendously appreciative to have such great choices on where to produce the world’s first purpose-built law enforcement patrol vehicle for our nation’s law enforcement first responders. Additionally, it is very important that we recognize and extend our appreciation to Governor Jennifer Granholm (D-MI) and Governor Bev Perdue (D-NC), their respective teams, as well as the citizens and first responders of the State of Michigan and the State of North Carolina for their interest in Carbon Motors,” remarked William Santana Li, chairman and chief executive officer, Carbon Motors Corporation. “Although there has been a great deal of focus on which state will be our home, we must remember that it is ‘country first’. The United States of America has a national security interest in seeing that this vehicle get into production as quickly as possible,” continued Li.

A final announcement is expected sometime this summer, maybe as early as the end of this month.

Biodiesel, Car Makers

Biodiesel Racing Series Featured in Car & Driver

John Davis

vwtdi2Neat article I just read in Car and Driver about the 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup series, which features young drivers (16 to 26 years old) driving practically identical VWs running on a 5 percent biodiesel blend.

Writer Mark Gillies got to take one of cars out during an actual qualifying run at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course near Columbus:

The engine is very torquey and the brakes are superb. The DSG transmission is so well tuned that you can leave it in auto-Sport mode and go pretty quickly, but I preferred to use the paddles and shift manually just before redline. This was on the good advice of an 18-year-old—Timmy Megenbier, a hotshoe ex-karter who was really helpful to this rookie. Despite the limited horsepower, the cars lap Mid-Ohio at an average speed of around 81 mph, which is plenty fast. There’s a strange feeling in this car, because the engine is quiet and it doesn’t rev very high.

Back in April, I told you about this series for young drivers sponsored by Houston-based HYPERFUELS, which is powering the series with its high performance Syndiesel® B5. Nice to see these guys getting a mention from one of the country’s premiere auto magazines.

Biodiesel

Biodiesel Not on Agenda for US-EU Trade Talks

John Davis

kirk1Just as the European Union was extending for five years the temporary duties the EU has slapped on American biodiesel, you would think would be the time the U.S. Trade Representative would want to talk about the protectionist tariffs with his European counterpart. Nope. Ambassador Ron Kirk had bigger fish to fry when he met with European Union Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton in Washington this week. Like a dispute over playing Irish music in American commercial establishments. I kind you not. While what could be a lifesaver for the U.S. economy and the world’s environment is being shut out of one of the biggest markets on earth, Kirk wanted to beat his sheleighly over whether Danny Boy should be sung in pubs (I’m not sure if that’s EXACTLY what the musical dispute is all about, but you get the idea).

To be fair, as noted in this Examiner.com story, there were several other important trade issues that were discussed at the meeting this week. But, c’mon. There wasn’t enough time to fit the biodiesel issue into the agenda? Between this and EPA official Margo Oge thinking that it takes 64 acres of soybeans… no, make that 400 acres of soybeans… to make a gallon of biodiesel (she’s a little off on her math. It’s actually 64 gallons of biodiesel out of each acre of beans.), you gotta start to wonder if anyone in Washington, D.C. is really looking out for U.S. biodiesel producers.

Meanwhile, Reuters reports that biodiesel production in Europe jumped by more an 35 percent in 2008 and is expected to grow even more this year, despite the fact that half the plants on the continent are not operating because of poor demand. The tariffs keeping the American biodiesel out of Europe are seen as major factors for the projected growth.

Biodiesel, Government, International

Only A Few Days Left to Show Support of E15

epa2There is less than one week left for you and other clean fuel proponents to actively support one of the most important issues in the ethanol industry today: increasing the allowed ethanol blend to E15.

This is the most immediate way to grant clean, American-made fuel access to a market currently dominated by the oil industry. The ethanol industry must continue to grow if it is to produce enough product to meet the growing demand that more blender pumps and FFVs will create. The current limit on the amount of ethanol that can be blended into a gallon of gasoline is at ten volume percent ethanol (E10) for conventional (non flex-fuel) vehicles. Growth Energy and 54 ethanol manufacturers submitted the E15 waiver application on March 6, and EPA must make a decision by December 1, 2009.

An immense amount of testing has shown that there is no scientific justification for the 10 percent limit on ethanol. In the past two years, multiple comprehensive studies involving over 100 vehicles, 85 vehicle and engine types, and 33 fuel dispensing units have been completed to evaluate the affects of ethanol-gasoline blends above 10 percent ethanol. These studies include a year-long drivability test and over 5,500 hours of materials compatibility testing. This research all shows that emission control systems are unaffected by a 5 (or in some cases 10) percent increase in ethanol content.

There is only one week left for you to send your supportive comment to the EPA as the public comment period ends July 20. Please send your comments today by going to www.GoE15.com.

Ethanol, Growth Energy

Don’t Miss the Corn Ethanol Land Use Conference

Joanna Schroeder

crops-corn-ethanolIt’s not too late to get your early bird discount when you register by August 4th for the National Corn Growers Association’s Corn Ethanol Land Use Conference. This two-day event will be held in St. Louis on August 25-26 and will discuss the land use and climate impacts of corn ethanol.

Registrants can participate in a myriad of topical sessions including land use change, nitrous oxide, new technologies and their effect on greenhouse gas emissions, domestic and international yields, satellite data and land conversion greenhouse gas emission factors, defining renewable biomass, and distillers grains.

“This conference provides a unique opportunity to get the latest information on land use from some of the most prominent experts in industry and academia. We are fortunate to have speakers representing each of the various models used in developing the rules implementing the new Renewable Fuel Standard,” said Jamey Cline, NCGA Director of Biofuel Programs.

Newly confirmed presenters at the conference include Steven Del Grosso, Colorado State University; Dr. Bruce McCarl, Texas A&M; Nancy Harris, Winrock International; Keith Kline, Oakridge National Laboratory, and Ken Copenhaver, University of Illinois, Chicago.

The cost os $250 per person and registration is available online.

conferences, corn, Ethanol, NCGA

Congress Urged to Fund Wind Energy

John Davis

swiftCongress is being urged to make more money available for wind-energy research.

This story from the Abilene Reporter News says that Andrew Swift, director of the Wind Science and Engineering Research Center at Texas Tech, made the case for a federal proposal to pump $200 million a year into research and development for wind power:

“I believe if research and education investments are made on the scale proposed that this industry can provide 20 percent of the nation’s electrical power by 2030,” the Lubbock professor said in testimony.

The Department of Energy came up with the 20 percent projection, estimating reaching it would create 180,000 wind-industry jobs.

A panel of the House Science and Technology Committee explored needs in wind and solar research Tuesday. The Energy and Environment Subcommittee also took up the 2009 Wind Energy Research and Development Act of 2009.

Authored by Rep. Paul Tonko, a New York Democrat, the bill would provide $200 million a year for wind-energy related research through 2014.

Wind energy experts point out that while unemployment has climbed and energy supplies have tightened, the wind industry has added 35,000 jobs and put out enough power for more than 2.5 million homes.

Government, Wind