Companies Form Montana Biodiesel Venture

John Davis

greenearthtargeted.jpgA West Coast company has joined a Texas-based company to form a joint venture to produce biodiesel in Montana.

sustainableoils.JPGThis press release from Sustainable Oils… formed from Seattle-based Targeted Growth, Inc. a renewable energy bioscience company, and Green Earth Fuels of Houston, a vertically integrated renewable biodiesel energy company… has more.

The new venture will produce and market up to 100 million gallons of Camelina-based biodiesel by 2010, launching the single largest U.S. contract for the unique biodiesel-specific feedstock. Nearly all of the initial Camelina production is expected to be grown in Montana.

“This is an exciting opportunity for Montana – it represents a combining of two major thrusts of economic growth outside the boot,” said Governor Brian Schweitzer. “It is energy related and it is value-added agriculture. Having this sort of major commitment is great news.” This joint venture sets a precedent for continued research and development of dedicated energy crops.

Targeted Growth has spent years applying its suite of yield and trait technologies to Camelina to create the first Elite Camelina Seed. Green Earth Fuels opened one of the country’s largest biodiesel production facilities this month, in Houston (see my November 15th post), and is successfully developing additional projects to provide biodiesel that meets exceptional quality and ratability standards to leading energy companies.

Camelina development has been a three-year project for Targeted Growth.

“We have created a better feedstock for biodiesel,” said Tom Todaro, CEO of Targeted Growth. “Camelina can be rotated with current Montana crops, it grows in land with lower agricultural value, and it doesn’t significantly increase the use of fertilizer or irrigation water. We think this will be a model for the development and use of other biofuel-specific crops.”

Biodiesel

Corn Growers Excited About Wind

John Davis

American Corn Growers AssociationThe American Corn Growers Association is excited about looking to alternative energy options, namely wind, for the production of corn. Nebraska corn grower Dan McGuire says wind power can save up to 90-million gallons of water a year. Dan serves as the Director of the American Corn Growers Association Wealth from the Wind program and he says corn growers have been committed to exploring options with wind power with the Wealth from the Wind program for five years. In fact, Dan says some ethanol plants are already using wind energy for part of their electric load.

Water isn´t the only thing wind power can help regulate. Dan says wind energy can also reduce volatility in natural gas prices. The American Wind Energy Association estimates that 11,603 MW of wind power will save over half a billion cubic feet of natural gas each day. The association says that means it expects wind power to reduce the use of natural gas for power generation by about five-percent and even up to 12 percent if 20-percent of electricity is generated by wind.

Agribusiness, Energy, Wind

Renewing Cheese Water for Renewable Fuels

John Davis

thenorthwestern.comA Wisconsin entrepreneur says producers don´t have to rely on corn, or even cellulosic waste, to create ethanol. Joe Van Groll, Owner of Grand Meadow Energy, LLC, says he can create ethanol from cheese water waste. Joe says this new method for creating ethanol is a great alternative. He points out that the ethanol industry is the target of negative publicity because critics say the use of corn takes water out of the water table and the food supply and shifts it to the energy market. But, Joe says water
is already a waste byproduct of the cheese making process, with 75 percent or greater water. Joe says using that waste to create ethanol removes that water, purifies it and puts it back into the environment.

Joe also uses canola oil for the production of biodiesel. He says there is no one “silver bullet” for creating renewable fuels. You can read more about Joe´s alternative production of alternative fuels at thenorthwestern.com.

Agribusiness, Biodiesel, Cellulosic, corn, Energy, Ethanol, Facilities, News, Production

Finding A Flex-Fuel

John Davis

EPICThere are more than 6.5 million flex-fuel vehicles out on the road today and more are on the way. Robert White, the Director of Operations for the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council says the Detroit Three – that´s General Motors, Ford and Chrysler have announced that half of their production in model year 2012 will be flex-fuel vehicles. Robert adds that Toyota and Mazda will also be getting on board with flex-fuel vehicle production soon. That´s a lot of FFVs hitting the road and that´s why EPIC has a tool for identifying FFVs on its website. Robert says a lot of drivers already have vehicles that can run on E85 and don´t even know it. To find out if you can fuel up with E85 visit the Flex-Fuel Indentifier at drivingethanol.com.

E85, EPIC, Ethanol, Flex Fuel Vehicles, News

Nebraska Offers Crops-to-Fuel Workshops

John Davis

nuianr.gifThe University of Nebraska is offering producers, consultants, dealers, and others interested in agriculture a chance to attend one of five “Growing Corn or Soybeans to Fuel Nebraska” workshops, December 17th – 21st at various locations around the state.

This press release from the school’s Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources has more information:

Morning topics include pointers on making cropping system decisions, information on making fuel from cellulose, crop residue values and how much can be sustainably removed, equipment and planning for planting in heavy residues and growing crops for better biodiesel.

In the afternoon, industry specialists will discuss what grain characteristics make the best ethanol. Other topics include corn, soybean and (in Sidney) wheat production costs, recognizing and managing diseases in these grains, water management to conserve both energy and water and evaluating cropping systems.

CCA credits are available in crop management 2.5, soil and water 2.0, and pest management 0.5.

You need to register one week before the actual date of the workshop:

– Dec. 17, Antelope County Courthouse meeting room, Neligh, Dewey Teel, (402) 887-5414, dteel1@unl.edu.

– Dec. 18, Extension Office, Beatrice, Paul Hay, (402) 223-1384, phay1@unl.edu.

– Dec. 19, Adams County Fairgrounds, Hastings, Ron Seymour, (402) 461-7209, rseymour1@unl.edu.

– Dec. 20, Extension Office, Lexington, Dave Stenberg, (308) 324-5501, dstenberg1@unl.edu.

– Dec. 21, Holiday Inn, Sidney, Karen DeBoer, (308) 254-4455, kdeboer1@unl.edu.

There is a nominal fee for lunch and program materials.

Biodiesel, Ethanol, News

Biodiesel Fuels Fryer Oil Boom

John Davis

As biodiesel has gained in popularity so has a feedstock that used to be just a waste product. Used cooking oil from restaurants can be made into some pretty high-quality biodiesel, and refiners are having to compete to get what used to be thrown out.

This story on the Oregonlive.com web site says it used to cost restaurants to have the old grease hauled away. Now, it’s become a second income for them:

tysonkeever1.jpgRecycled cooking oil has traditionally been sold for use in cattle feed and cosmetics. But the segment going to biofuels has grown in recent years to account for about 20 percent of the used oil market, said Tyson Keever, co-founder of Sequential Pacific Biofuels, the state’s largest manufacturer of biodiesel.

Portland’s oil peddlers are now fighting over grease worth as much as $1.20 a gallon.

“You have processors now in the metro area who are looking at using that grease for biodiesel primarily,” said Mike McCallum, president and CEO of the Oregon Restaurant Association. “There are restaurants who are being solicited for the use of the grease and are getting some money for it.”

The article goes on to point that each person in Oregon uses about a gallon of fryer grease a month. Now, if everyone of those gallons was tunred into biodiesel, the story says it would meet only half of what’s needed in diesel for that state. But I’m more a glass-is-half-full kind of guy. Isn’t that half of the diesel we wouldn’t have to get from foreign sources or even non-renewable American sources? And isn’t it better than throwing it into a hole in the ground? Seems to me that fryer grease biodiesel is about as green as you can get.

Biodiesel

New Technology to Increase Ethanol Production

Cindy Zimmerman

Ethanol plants have a new tool to enable them to increase the amount of ethanol they produce per bushel of grain.

PioneerDuPont business Pioneer Hi-Bred has introduced QualiTrak(SM), a new measurement and reporting system that facilitates the flow of predicted ethanol yield information to both plant personnel and corn growers.

According to a company release, QualiTrak is the only system that predicts and reports ethanol yield data in gallons per bushel.

“QualiTrak is a big step toward increasing the amount of ethanol that processors can get from a bushel,” said Russ Sanders, marketing director, Pioneer Hi-Bred. “The system can provide processors with comprehensive comparative ethanol yield prediction data for every load of grain brought to a plant. When shared with corn growers who sell grain to the facility, this information will enable the selection of seed hybrids that can produce higher ethanol yields per bushel.”

The measurement function of the QualiTrak system incorporates the Pioneer proprietary Ethanol Yield Potential calibration technology used with FOSS grain analyzers. This calibration accurately predicts ethanol yield on all commercial grain, regardless of seed source. The reporting function provides comprehensive comparative information for all loads of grain delivered to a plant. This data can help both growers and processors evaluate and compare each delivery.

Ethanol, News

Spotlight on VeraSun

Cindy Zimmerman

VeraSunVeraSun Energy Corporation, a major producer of ethanol and a leader in the establishment of public E85 fueling stations, will be featured on Modern Marvels on The History Channel, Monday at 7:00 p.m. CST.

According to the National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition, Modern Marvels spent a full day at VeraSun’s Charles City, Iowa production facility filming and documenting the ethanol production process for a 60-minute show about corn.

The program will focus on why corn is the largest agricultural crop in the world and has fed the masses from ancient times to this day. Modern Marvels states that corn is not only a vegetable and a cereal grain; it is a commodity as well. The show will visit Lakeside Foods in Reedsburg, Wisconsin and see how tons of corn are harvested and canned within hours. Then the program will feature VeraSun Energy in Charles City, Iowa, to discover how corn is converted into fuel. Modern Marvels will take a look to our past so that it can be understood that without corn we probably would not be here.

Ethanol, News

Lt. Gov. Says Kansas Will Be Renewable Energy Exporter

John Davis

After a controversy that has put a coal-fired power plant in Kansas on hold, that state’s lieutenant governor says Kansas will still be able to export energy… but now in a renewable form.

parkinson.jpgThe Salina (KS) Journal reports Lt. Gov. Mark Parkinson made the remarks before a Topeka Rotary Club as he assured members that the rejection of a major coal plant project wouldn’t doom the region:

parkinsonandturbines.jpg“I think you’ll see massive growth in wind farms in western Kansas,” Parkinson told about 100 people while noting his family, based in Johnson County, still owned a farm in Scott County.

Afterward, he continued to expound on the west’s potential for a strong future in energy — renewable energy, that is.

“The future of western Kansas in terms of energy is incredibly bright, but it’s in alternative energy that we have in western Kansas. It’s not in buying coal from Wyoming.”

And he sees ethanol as significant in the mix as well:

* Fifteen of the 18 ethanol plants open or under construction are in western Kansas.

* A vast majority of wind farms open or under construction are there, too, he added, as is virtually all new transmission — “millions of dollars of construction.”

* One of the first cellulosic ethanol plants will be in Hugoton, although the technology is about a decade away from development for the market.

Ethanol, News, Wind

The Math Behind Soy Biodiesel

John Davis

The recent story of a biodiesel plant under construction near Evansville, Wisconsin that halted construction because of the high price of its feedstock, soybeans (see my November 13th, 2007 story on the issue), has prompted the local newspaper to question how economical making biodiesel really is.

This article in the Janesville (WI) Gazette breaks down how you can actually still make a buck turning about $10 of feedstock into about $3.50 of biodiesel:

Aren’t you crushing an expensive product into a cheaper one?

npp-logo1.jpgThat’s a common misconception, said Jamie Derr, owner of Sun Prairie’s Great Lakes Biofuels. But most of a bushel of beans goes to the same place it always has: the feed bunk on a dairy farm.

Here’s how one bushel of soybeans breaks down:

— One bushel weighs 66 pounds, and costs $10.29 in Chicago this week.

— Ground at a commercial solvent crush plant—like the one proposed for Evansville—that bushel makes 44 pounds of soybean meal, a high protein animal feed. That’s about $6.16 worth of feed.

— That same bushel produces 11 pounds of soy oil, about 1.4 gallons. That much oil sells for $4.73, or about $3.38 per gallon. One gallon of oil makes about one gallon of biodiesel.

— The rest is soy hulls, which are sometimes used as filler in animal feed, and waste product. Some beans are lost in the crushing process.

The article goes on to point out that consumers have shown a willingness to buy the green fuel. They just want the price to be less than or at least comparable to what they’ll pay for petroleum diesel at the pump.

Biodiesel