Farmers Co-op Breaks Ground on Renewable Fuels Station

Joanna Schroeder

Farmers Cooperative Company has broken ground on the future site of its new Mount Ayr, Iowa renewable fuels retail location. The station will offer consumers higher blends of ethanol and biodiesel including ethanol blends E10, E15 as a registered fuel, E30 and E85, as well as biodiesel blends B10, B20 and B99 for jobbers and special use customers.

Groundbreaking-Group.2“The price of [E10] in Iowa is 17-30 cents below gasoline, so the savings is even greater with higher ethanol blends,” Iowa Governor Terry Branstad told the audience at the groundbreaking ceremony. “I’ve told the EPA, if E15 is offered to give consumers a choice, they will choose cheaper renewable fuels.”

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey told attendees, “For this project, we have a great partnership with [Iowa State University] who will be conducting a study to find out why motorists choose the fuels they do. This is a great opportunity to convince others to make the same type of investment.”

Farmers Cooperative Company was selected to receive $125,000 in funding for the new site from Iowa Governor Terry Branstad’s “Fueling Our Future” program, administered by the Iowa Department of Transportation (IDOT) and the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS). In addition, Farmers Cooperative will receive $100,000 in funding from the Iowa Renewable Fuels Infrastructure Program. Construction will begin later this year.

“We congratulate Farmers Cooperative Company on this great event to celebrate the groundbreaking on a true renewable fuels retail location that will provide consumers with greater access to clean, locally-produced ethanol and biodiesel,” added Iowa Renewable Fuels Association Managing Director Lucy Norton. “With the help of Gov. Branstad’s ‘Fueling Our Future’ program and the Iowa Renewable Fuels Infrastructure Program, Iowans will continue to benefit from fuel choice at locations like this one.”

Biodiesel, biofuels, blends, E15, E85, Ethanol, Iowa RFA

Strata Solar Completes Nine Solar Projects in NC

Joanna Schroeder

Strata Solar, has installed nine utility-scale solar projects across North Carolina (NC) using more than $100 million of tax-equity financing provided by a subsidiary of Wells Fargo & Company. When combined, the projects produce enough electricity to power 5,000 homes and were in part made possible by a 35 percent North Carolina Renewable Energy Tax Credit. The power will be purchased by NC utility Progress Energy Carolinas.

Strata Solar Nash 58 solar array in NC“We are very proud of our ability to invest and build in North Carolina’s rural communities. These projects bring jobs, significant local spend, and an increase in the tax base without the requirement of county dollars which is typical of development projects,” said Markus Wilhelm, Strata Solar’s CEO. “On a number of occasions we’ve witnessed these projects having an impact on attracting additional investors who are looking for business-friendly environments.”

The three largest projects – Bladenboro, Wagstaff and Nash 58 – all exceed six MWs in capacity and provide a significant boost to the local tax base without requiring additional county expenditures on sewer, roads or any other infrastructure.

“As a leading provider of capital in renewable energy and cleantech across the U.S., Wells Fargo is excited to participate in the rapid expansion of solar in the Southeast,” said Barry Neal, Head of Wells Fargo’s Environmental Finance Group. “We are proud to partner with top-tier developers like Strata who share in our commitment to support communities and deploy clean energy.”

Renewable Energy, Solar

Companies Need to Step Up Sustainability Efforts

Joanna Schroeder

According to a recent report, while there are pockets of sustainability leadership in the U.S. business community, much more needs to be done. The Ceres and Sustainalytics study found that most companies are merely taking small, incremental steps to address sustainability issues that could impact not only their bottom line, but also the economy and planet.

Ceres Sustainability Report 2014“Given the acceleration of environmental and social challenges globally – floods, droughts, and workplace tragedies – most U.S. corporations are not keeping pace with the level of change,” said Mindy Lubber, president of the sustainability advocacy group, Ceres. “Those that step up to the challenge will be best positioned to thrive in the rapidly changing, resource-constrained 21st century economy.”

The report assesses the sustainability performance of 613 of the largest publicly traded companies in the U.S. and covers nearly 80 percent of the total market capitalization of all public companies in the country. It tracks corporate performance against 20 key metrics essential for any sustainable corporation to follow, including governance, disclosure, greenhouse gas emissions reductions and labor standards. It identifies sustainability trends across eight key sectors, highlighting industry best practices and which companies are leading among their peers. It also provides aggregate data and online scorecards for companies on each performance area. Key findings include:

  • While many companies are taking action to reduce GHG emissions, few have set time-bound targets. More than two-thirds of the companies evaluated (438) have activities in place aimed at reducing GHG emissions, but only 35 percent (212) have established time-bound targets for reducing GHG emissions. In terms of renewable energy, 37 percent of companies have implemented a program, while only six percent have quantitative targets to increase renewable energy sourcing.
  • More companies are setting clear sustainability standards for suppliers. Fifty-eight percent of companies (353) have supplier codes of conduct that address human rights in supply chains, compared to 43 percent in 2012. However, only a third (205 companies) have some activities in place to engage suppliers on sustainability performance issues, up from 27 percent in 2012.
  • A growing number of companies are incorporating sustainability performance into executive compensation packages. Twenty-four percent of companies (147) link executive compensation to sustainability performance – up from 15 percent in 2012.

The metrics used in this report were first spelled out in the Ceres Roadmap for Sustainability, which has been used by dozens of leading companies since 2010 to incorporate sustainability into their business planning and corporate accountability infrastructure.

“The findings of this report should inspire companies to examine their own progress and identify where they stand on the path to sustainability,” said Michael Jantzi, CEO and Founder of Sustainalytics. “This is about more than how companies stack up against their peers – it’s about how innovation is driving performance from the corporate boardroom throughout the entire supply chain.”

Clean Energy, Climate Change, Environment, Renewable Energy, Research

BioEnergy Bytes

Joanna Schroeder

  • BioEnergyBytesDFThe U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is seeking public comments on the draft action plan for its RE-Powering America’s Land Initiative. The plan guides EPA’s efforts over the next two years to encourage renewable energy development on current and formerly contaminated lands, landfills and mine sites when such development is aligned with the community’s vision for the site. The agency will solicit comments for 30 days. Comments on the proposed plan are due by Friday, May 30.To submit a comment, please send to cleanenergy@epa.gov.
  • Mars, Incorporated, in partnership with Sumitomo Corporation of Americas, have announced an agreement on a new 200MW wind farm that will generate 100% of the electricity needs of Mars’ U.S. operations, which is comprised of 70 sites, including 37 factories and 25,000 Associates. ‘Mesquite Creek Wind,’ a 118-turbine wind farm was jointly developed by Sumitomo and BNB Renewable Energy and is based near Lamesa, Texas with a footprint of 25,000 acres­ and an annual output of over 800,000 megawatt-hours. The wind farm represents the biggest long-term commitment to renewable energy use of any food manufacturing business in the United States.
  • The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has pre-qualified a four-company team led by TransGen Energy of Rockville, Maryland to bid for solar projects at U.S. military installations throughout the United States and its territories. The TransGen Energy team was one of 38 entities recently authorized to pursue solar power generation Task Orders under a Multiple Award Task Order Contract (MATOC).
  • According to UNICA, the cane sugar processed by mills in South-Central region of the country totaled 12.57 million tons in the first half of April 2014, up 62.52% in compared to the value observed in the same fortnight last year (7.73 million tonnes). Since the beginning of the 2014/2015 season until April 16, grinding totaled 16.41 million tonnes – 71.45% higher than in the same period of 2013 (9.57 million tons). At the end of the first fortnight of April this year 153 mills were in operation in the region, compared to 155 recorded in the same period last year.
Bioenergy Bytes

Oregon Institute of Technology Goes All Renewable

Joanna Schroeder

According to Oregon Institute of Technology, they are the first campus in the world to produce all of its energy needs using renewable energy. The campus is now 100 percent powered by a combination of solar and geothermal sources. The achievement was noted in a ceremony that included U.S. Senators Wyden and Merkley, Oregon Senator Whitsett, and First Lady Hayes.

The campus has been entirely heated by geothermal water for several decades, and now the geothermal resource is being utilized in a 1.75-megawatt combined heat and power plant to provide electricity. Additionally, a 2.0-megawatt solar array was installed on 9 acres of campus land and commissioned at the end of last year.

“The geothermal and solar projects all serve important and dual purposes for Oregon Tech,” said Christopher Maples, president of Oregon Tech. “They support the education of our students in the growing green jobs industry, and they put us closer to our goal of becoming a climate neutral campus by 2050.”

Oregon Insitute of Technology Geothermal-Solar EnergyOregon Tech built the geothermal power plants in two stages, beginning with a 0.28- megawatt module that was the first operating geothermal power plant in Oregon. The success of that system, followed by the ability to garner additional financial support, led to the installation of a 1.75- megawatt project. In combination, they generate an estimated 8,315,000 kilowatt hours annually, reducing energy costs by nearly one-half million dollars per year.

In addition to the combined heat and power system, Oregon Tech installed 7,800 ground-mounted solar electric panels next to the John F. Moehl football stadium, with a total capacity of just under 2 megawatt. The solar project is an “all-Oregon” project and is one of the largest solar photovoltaic system in the state of Oregon and the largest multiple campus, university system-based contract for solar energy in the nation.

The university received a Blue Sky grant from Pacific Power to support the system installation, which has had a positive economic impact on Klamath Falls and the surrounding areas. SolarCity, the contractor that installed the system, used all local contractors and labor to complete the project.

The combined output from the three renewable energy projects on the campus will exceed the campus electricity use by an estimated 700,000 kilowatt hours per year. That energy will be donated to Pacific Power’s low-income subsidy program, making Oregon Tech the largest non-utility net metering contributor in the state.

Education, Geothermal, Renewable Energy, Solar

A Lighter Version of Biodiesel-Powered Land Cruiser

John Davis

paperlandcruiser1You might not be able to take it four-wheeling, but a lighter version of a biodiesel-powered Land Cruiser could help you get through a long day at your desk. Autoevolution reports Toyota is offering a paper model of its legendary vehicle, just right for killing time deep thinking sessions as you come up with big ideas for your boss.

Toyota subsidiary Toyota Auto Body Co has made a paper version of its biodiesel-powered Land Cruiser you can download, print and build. If you have no idea what’s with the Bio-Cruiser, you need to learn that it known for emitting 60 percent less carbon dioxide than regular diesel Dakar competitors.

Toyota Auto Body entered the real car into the 2014 Dakar rally using biodiesel made our of used cooking oil to show that it cares for nature and people could use other fuels for racing purposes.

You can download the paper Toyota Land Cruiser kit here. Soon you can recreate the Dakar rally, complete with your own, self-generated sound effects (but you might want to close your office door, lest the boss thinks you’re just goofing off).

Biodiesel

Checkoff Targets Big Yields for Biodiesel Feedstock

John Davis

USBlogoA farmers’ checkoff is targeting research to get bigger yields for this country’s primary feedstock for biodiesel. This story from Biodiesel Magazine says the United Soybean Board wants to increase average soybean yields by about 50 percent in the decade.

“Yield research has been the center of checkoff research since the organization was established,” said Gregg Fujan, who leads the United Soybean Board’s focus on supply. “Checkoff-funded production research is incredibly important to U.S. soybean-farmer profitability. With the advancements we help bring to market, the national yield trend line should continue to grow at an even higher rate.”

The goal of this project is to increase the national soybean yield average to 60 bushels per acre, about 20 bushels higher than the current national average, by the year 2025. To do it, scientists are using soy-checkoff funding to harness the power of the sequenced soybean genome by using various genetic methods, such as nested association mapping (NAM), RNA sequencing and epigenetics.

The article goes on to say that soy-checkoff-funded researchers are working on projects, such as sequencing genomes to find the best beans for yields, even putting together a “soybean genome atlas.” Other research is looking at how soybean plants respond to pathogens and pests that can cut yields.

USB points out that while a 60-bushel-per-acre national yield might seem a bit lofty, last year’s yield-contest winner topped 100 bushels per acre.

Biodiesel, Soybeans, USB

RFA Challenges Oil Industry Letter to EPA

Cindy Zimmerman

RFA-logo-13The CEO of the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) today sent a letter to the head of the Environmental Protection Agency challenging claims by the oil industry regarding the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).

In a letter sent to EPA earlier this week, the American Petroleum Institute (API) requested that EPA use October 2013 fuel consumption projections—instead of the most current projections—when setting the final 2014 RFS renewable volume obligations (RVOs). RFA president and CEO Bob Dinneen called the suggestion that outdated fuel consumption projections should be used to establish the RVOs “the highest form of hypocrisy and misdirection.”

“Common sense and the principles of good rulemaking dictate that the final RVOs should be based on the latest available fuel consumption projections from EIA,” wrote Dinneen in the letter to EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. “Since the inception of the RFS2, EPA has always relied on the most recent EIA projections to set annual RVOs. API has never objected to this—until now.” Dinneen adds that API has repeatedly requested that EPA base its cellulosic biofuel RVO on the most current available production data.

Dinneen said API also misconstrues the fact that the RFS is fundamentally a volumetric standard, not a percentage-based requirement. “In the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, Congress set forth the specific volumes of renewable fuels that must be consumed annually. From these statutorily required volumes, as well as projected levels of gasoline and diesel consumption, EPA derives its annual percentage RVOs,” wrote Dinneen. “API obviously has the RVO-setting process backward, requesting that EPA start with an arbitrary renewable volume percentage and work in reverse to establish the commensurate volumetric requirements.”

Read more here.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA, RFS

Liverpool Researchers Study Agave for Biofuels

Joanna Schroeder

A PhD student at the University of Liverpool is studying a plant that may be a viable feedstock to produce advanced biofuels. Agave sisalana is a proposed biofuel plant that can be grown in semi-arid conditions unsuited to food crops. The plant is already grown for fibre in countries like Brazil, Tanzania, Kenya and Madagascar. Sisal fibre has traditionally been used for marine ropes, bailer twine, and rugs, but today it is also finding new uses such as reinforced plastic composites for car door panels.

According to Bupphada, agave has a number of favorable characteristics for use as a fuel, as it contains large amounts of sugar and cellulose, and grows well in seasonally dry areas. As second generation biofuels technologies for converting cellulose to liquid transportation fuels are maturing fast, agave may prove to be a good feedstock.

agave sisal-plantsSupervised by plant biologist, Dr James Hartwell, Bupphada is investigating the genomic basis for agave’s ability to grow productively in dry regions.

“Unlike most plants, agave opens the pores in its leaves and captures carbon dioxide during the cool, humid night,” said Hartwell. “It uses an adaptation of photosynthesis called Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM), which means that it loses a lot less water during photosynthesis in comparison to major food crops like wheat or rice”.

In collaboration with Liverpool’s world-leading Centre for Genomic Research, Bupphada has sequenced RNA from agave leaves in order to gain a comprehensive understanding of the genes used for CAM photosynthesis. Long-term, the hope is that knowledge of which genes are important in agave will help accelerate its improvement as a biomass feedstock crop.

Bupphada came to Liverpool as a result of a partnership that the ARDA has with the University. After completing his PhD, he plants to return to Thailand to work at the Agricultural Ministry, applying his new findings on research projects there.

“Biofuels are a credible way of reducing our reliance on oil, but the areas in which they are grown requires careful planning,” said Bupphada. “Understanding how plants like agave grow in marginal areas means we can maintain food supply, while also creating alternative sources of income for communities.”

advanced biofuels, feedstocks, Renewable Energy, Research

CHS to Aquire Illinois River Energy

Joanna Schroeder

Sinav Limited, based in London, England has signed an agreement with CHS to sell 100 percent of their stock that includes Illinois River Energy. The ethanol plant is based in Rochelle, Illinois and produces 133 million gallons of ethanol per year. Providing all conditions are met, the transaction is expected to close in June.

Illinois River Energy“Illinois River Energy is a top-tier ethanol plant, well-situated in a strategic growth area that will add value to our farmer-owners through expanded grain origination, additional renewable fuels gallons and distillers grain by-products,” said Mark Palmquist, CHS executive vice president and chief operating officer, Ag Business.

CHS markets renewable fuels to energy customers across the U.S. and through 1,400 Cenex- branded retail petroleum outlets, including more than 1,000 Cenex convenience stores, and markets dried distillers grains with solubles (DDGS) globally on behalf of more than 20 ethanol plants across the United States.

“We have enjoyed a strong business relationship with CHS as they have been our ethanol marketer since the start of Illinois River Energy operations in 2006. Today, we look forward to formally joining CHS and adding value to the global cooperative as an ethanol, DDGS, and distillers corn oil producer,” added Richard Ruebe, CEO, Illinois River Energy.

biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News