ACE Conference 2026

Ribbon Cut For Nebraska Ethanol Plant

Cindy Zimmerman

VeraSun Ribbon CuttingNebraska Governor Dave Heineman helped officials with VeraSun Energy and others in a ceremonial ribbon cutting ceremony and open house Thursday for its 110 million-gallon-per year biorefinery in Albion, Nebraska.

The plant is one of 11 VeraSun ethanol production facilities currently in operation. The company has an annual production capacity of more than one billion gallons, making VeraSun one of the largest ethanol producers in the United States. The Albion plant will annually process about 39 million bushels of corn to produce 110 million gallons of ethanol and 350,000 tons of distillers grains for livestock feed.

Renewable Fuels Association president Bob Dinneen congratulated VeraSun on the celebration. “Nebraska’s residents have long understood the economic, environmental and security benefits of a strong domestic ethanol industry, and their legislators have helped set the stage for ethanol and other biofuels to contribute to our nation’s energy security,” said Dinneen.

Ethanol, Facilities, News, RFA

Twelve E85 Stations to Open in Atlanta

CleanFUEL Distribution announced that twelve E85 stations will soon be open in cities surrounding Atlanta, GA. A promotion, sponsored by several entities on June 2 and 3, will sell E85 for $1.85 per gallon parts of each day. Involved in the openings will be Protec Fuel Management, CleanFUEL Distribution, Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (GEFA), the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council (EPIC), Enterprise Rent-a-Car, Chrysler, SAFA Express, Indore Oil and the Atlanta Clean Cities Coalition.

EPIC E85“Never before have twelve E85 stations opened at once. This is a momentous occasion. Since E85 is the key to creating a market for cellulosic ethanol, this is an extremely important step that will put the greater Atlanta area on the path to increasing petroleum independence and cleaner air. Protec and CleanFUEL Distribution are proud to have worked with our outstanding partners to open these stations,” said Todd Garner, Managing Partner of Protec and CEO of CleanFUEL Distribution.

GEFA assisted in financing 21 E85 facilities in Georgia, ten of which will be part of the grand opening festivities the week of June 2.

Read More

Car Makers, E85, EPIC, Ethanol, National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition, News

Solar Power in Spain

John Davis

Another 8.7 megawatts of solar energy is now available in Spain. SunPower Corp. has opened two new solar-electric power plants in Llerena and Lebrija.

The solar power plant constructed by SunPower in Llerena is 4.8 megawatts; the plant in Lebrija is 3.9 megawatts. In Spain, SunPower has completed or has signed contracts to deliver solar power plants totaling more than 100 megawatts.

For these projects, SunPower used its proprietary SunPower(R) Tracker technology, which follows the sun during the day, and delivers significantly more energy than traditional fixed-tilt systems.

“We utilized our industry-leading SunPower Tracker technology at both of the power plant sites, maximizing energy output, while optimizing land use and reducing related costs,” said Marco Antonio Northland, general manager of SunPower’s European operations.

SunPower says renewable energy has a great potential of thriving in these regions of Spain.

Energy, International, Solar

World’s First Renewable Gasoline

John Davis

Sapphire Energy says renewable technology is not just for alternative fuels. The San Diego-based company says it can produce gasoline from sunlight, CO2 and microorganisms, such as algae.

Not biodiesel, not ethanol. And no crops or farm land required.

Company scientists have built a platform that uses sunlight, CO2, photosynthetic microorganisms and non-arable land to produce carbon-neutral alternatives to petrochemical-based processes and products. First up: renewable gasoline.

Sapphire’s processes and science are so radical, the company is at the forefront of an entirely new industrial category called ‘Green Crude Production.’ Products and processes in this category differ significantly from other forms of biofuel because they are made solely from photosynthetic microorganisms, sunlight and CO2; do not result in biodiesel or ethanol; enhance and replace petroleum-based products; are carbon neutral and renewable; and don’t require any food crop or agricultural land.

Energy

Airplane Builders Looking at Biodiesel, Alt Fuels

John Davis

Some of the world’s biggest airplane manufacturers are looking at renewable fuels… made from everythig from hydrogen to algae… to fly the friendly skies.

This AP article from the Seattle Times says companies at the the famous Berlin, Germany Air Show were showing off some of their alternatively-fueled aircraft:

Boeing displayed a one-seater demonstration airplane that can fly on batteries and hydrogen fuel cells. While the plane is still in the early stages, the company said that test flights have shown “a manned airplane can maintain a straight-level flight with fuel cells as the only power source.”

Boeing said the technology could potentially power small manned and unmanned aircraft. But it said it “does not envision fuel cells will provide primary power for large passenger airplanes,” although it will continue investigating their potential.

Airbus brought along a demonstrator version of its A320 passenger jet that uses fuel cells to power some of the aircraft’s steering systems. The company said it sees great potential in fuel-cell applications.

Dutch airline KLM, meanwhile, said at the show that it had signed a contract with AlgaeLink for fuel made from algae for a pilot project whose first test flight is scheduled for this fall.

AlgaeLink produces technology to grow algae that can be turned into biodiesel and is setting up two plants of its own in Europe.

Biodiesel, Hydrogen

San Francisco Getting Grease-to-Biodiesel Plant

John Davis

A $1-million grant is helping San Francisco build its first grease-to-biodiesel production facility.

This story from the Bay Area’s NBC-11 says that Mayor Gavin Newsom made the announcement today that the city had received the grant from the California Energy Commission to build the facility near the city’s sewage plant:

Mayor’s office officials said the plan is considered unique because the facility would attempt to create three grades of biodiesel from “brown grease,” which are pan scrapings and washed oil residue trapped in grease traps under restaurant sinks.

Mayor’s office officials said there are more than 2.5 million gallons of brown grease in San Francisco, compared with 1.5 million gallons of “yellow grease,” such as fryer oil.

The yellow grease is easily converted into biodiesel, while brown grease is usually discarded at sewage treatment plants.

“Our program to turn waste cooking oil and yellow grease into biodiesel has been an enormous success, but San Francisco must continue to raise the bar when it comes to reducing our greenhouse gas emissions and exploring alternative energies,” said Newsom. “With this grant, our unique brown-grease-to-biodiesel plant will break new ground for sustainable fuel production in California and serve as a model for the entire state.”

The facility would produce three grades of biodiesel: high-grade, certified biodiesel; lower-grade biodiesel for use in the plant’s machinery and generators; and rich energy for cogeneration… a process that captures methane gas at the sewage plant and converts that to heat or electricity.

Last November, San Francisco started SFGreasecycle… a program that collects yellow grease from restaurants in order to make biodiesel for city vehicles, buses and fire trucks.

Biodiesel, Government

Biodiesel Works Like Gas

John Davis

A newly developed “bio-gasoline” product from XcelPlus enables internal combustion gasoline engines to run on natural oils like soybean and vegetable oil. XcelPlus is offering a “Biolene” additive that enables producers and consumers of biodiesel to convert the biofuel so it’s suitable for use in any gasoline powered engines. The company says the new product means home blenders can expect final pump-grade fuel to cost about $2.70 a gallon.

According to Mr. Bill R. Smith, President of Xcelplus, “current testing of the fuel is being conducted with test vehicles run exclusively on Biolene. The test vehicles are being monitored for CO, CO2, hydrocarbon, O2 and NOx exhaust emissions, and we are very pleased with test results to date. We are looking towards an ASTM testing for the fuel before launching it into global markets.”

Check out the google video of Biolene here:

The additive is expected to be available for purchase later this year.

Biodiesel, Energy

New CFO for BioFuel Energy Corp.

John Davis

There’s new financial leadership at BioFuel Energy Corp. The company has named Kelly G. Maguire its new Vice President-Finance and Chief Financial Officer. Maquire is replacing David J.Kornder who is resigning “to pursue an opportunity to become the Chief Executive of an oil and gas company.”

Mr. Maguire is currently the Executive Vice President of Pendum, Inc., a privately held company with roughly 2,800 employees servicing 60,000 automated teller machines (ATMs) nationwide. Mr. Maguire served as Pendum’s Chief Financial Officer from 2000 to 2006. Mr. Maguire began his career with Deloitte & Touche, LLP, spending almost 10 years in the audit area. Mr. Maguire received his B.A. degree in Accounting from the University of North Dakota.

BioFuel Energy is currently constructing two ethanol plants that would produce 115 million gallons per year in the Midwestern corn belt.

Energy, Ethanol, News

AT&T Green Fleet

John Davis

More than 100 new alternative-fuel vehicles will be on the road for AT&T. The nationwide communications company is launching a new fleet of Compressed Natural Gas vans, 65 electric hybrid cars and 15 electric hybrid conversion work trucks in 30 cities across the U.S. Start looking for them in June.

The vehicles will be embedded into AT&T’s workforce as operational components of its fleet. AT&T will measure and track fuel efficiency, greenhouse gas emissions, operating costs, performance and driver satisfaction of each vehicle.

The vehicles, which will be deployed in cities in California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio and Texas, join four Ford Escape hybrids that were deployed in California in late 2007. A Green Technology insignia will make the vehicles easy to identify on the road.

AT&T estimates that its use of these alternative-fueled and more fuel-efficient vehicles will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 124 metric tons and conserve nearly 34,395 gallons of fuel annually.

Energy, Environment, transportation

UT Galveston Applauds Ocean Wave Energy Technology

John Davis

Renewable energy doesn’t stop with earth, sun and wind. Now water is becoming a viable source for alternative power. Texas A&M has put Renewable Energy Oceanwave Technology from Indpendent Natural Resources to the test for three months in the Gulf of Mexico. The university says the SEADOG Pump is a preliminary success.

Researchers praised the pump’s design features for good mechanical efficiency that absorbs most of the potential energy and a significant amount of the kinetic energy content in the wave. This report further validates findings from a 21-day sea trial conducted in January of 2007 which compares the amount of energy SEADOG Pump can extract per square mile of deployment compared to other ocean, wind and solar renewable technologies. Because the pumps can be deployed in close proximity to each other, INRI(TM) estimates that they will produce five to 20 times more power per square mile than other technologies.

Generally speaking, wave energy is captured by engineered devices or components attached to stationary or floating structures that are set in motion by waves or swells on the surface of the ocean. Most wave energy technologies grow in cost because the specified equipment is sensitive to corrosive seawater and has intermittency issues similar to wind and solar energy. SEADOG Pump on the other hand, separates itself from other technologies on the market by using a simple pump design with few moving parts and no electronics. Multiple pumps are deployed in fields depending on how much power or water is desired. In addition, the SEADOG Pump moves large volumes of water to shore where it can be stored until needed for energy production or desalination. This ability to store energy removes the intermittency issues associated with other renewable energy technologies.Read More

Energy