Largest Solar-Thermal Plant in Chile Announced

Joanna Schroeder

Abengoa has been selected by the Ministry of Energy of the Chilean Government and Corfo (Corporacion de Fomento de la Produccion) to develop a 110 MW solar plant using tower technology with 17.5 hours of thermal energy storage using molten salts. The project will be located in the Atacama Desert, the region, believed to have the highest solar radiation concentrations in the world. It will be the first solar-thermal plant for direct electricity production in South America.

Abengoa solar thermal plantAbengoa’s project won the international tender launched by the Chilean Ministry of Energy and Corfo to construct the first Concentrated Solar Power plant in Latin America. As part of this tender, the project will receive direct subsidies from the Chilean Government and the European Union, as well as financing from the Inter-American Development Bank, KFW Kreditanstalt fur Wiederaufbau, the Clean Technology Fund and Canadian Fund.

Solar-thermal tower technology uses a series of mirrors (heliostats) that track the sun on two axes, concentrating the solar radiation on a receiver on the upper part of the tower where the heat is transferred to the molten salts. The salts then transfer their heat in a heat exchanger to a water current to generate superheated and reheated steam, which feeds a turbine capable of generating around 110 MW of power.

The solar plant will also have a pioneering thermal storage system with 17.5 hours of storage that has been designed and developed by Abengoa. The company explains this approach makes the technology highly manageable, enabling it to supply electricity in a stable way, 24 hours a day, responding to all periods of electricity demand.

Abengoa’s new project will be located in the commune of Maria Elena in the Antofagasta region, northern Chile. The project forms part of Chile’s national renewable energy program, intended to provide Chile with a cleaner energy future, while also promoting its economic development and reducing its dependency on coal and natural gas. Chile has set a target to produce 20% of its electricity from clean energy sources by 2025.

Construction of the project is due to start in the second half of 2014.

Alternative energy, Electricity, International, Solar

Genera Showcasing Biomass Harvesting Solutions

John Davis

generaequip1The biomass experts at Genera Energy Inc. are showing off some of their latest harvesting techniques to get the most out of the company’s biomass energy crops. During a demonstration at Genera’s Vonore, Tenn. campus, officials showed how these techniques will help producers of the green energy feedstocks.

“Genera is laser-focused on researching, developing, field testing and bringing to market the most efficient bioenergy crops, management techniques, harvesting processes and equipment,” said Kelly Tiller, Ph.D., President and CEO of Genera Energy. “This year, we’re expanding our use of state-of-the-art self-propelled field harvesters and innovative ways to handle, move, and store feedstock that can revolutionize large-scale biomass production.”

Genera’s experts combine their deep understanding of agricultural production and systems with their industrial scale management and logistics experience to provide robust, economical supply chains that balance cost, risk, reliability and quality. That’s important for all of Genera’s downstream biomass customers, regardless of whether they’re using that biomass to produce clean, renewable bio-based fuels, chemicals, power, or products.

“One of the innovations developed by Genera’s biomass experts is a commercially-viable method to bulk harvest biomass crops using existing and new technologies, integrated into our proprietary system,” said Sam Jackson, Genera’s vice president of business development. “For many biomass supply chains, this new system delivers product that offers tremendous savings in cost, time, production, storage and delivery compared to traditional methods.”

As biomass producers and refiners of renewable fuel from the feedstock move toward commercial-scale production in the coming year, Genera officials see their technologies as one way to ensure biomass remains an affordable, sustainable feedstock for advanced biofuels.

“Fortunately, Genera’s ahead of the curve and our deep understanding of the industry, real-world experience and successful field testing enable rapid deployment and scale-up of our integrated biomass supply systems,” [Tiller] said.

biomass

Grocer Greens Up Greens Delivery with Biodiesel

John Davis

revolutionbiodieselThe veggies might have a nice, healthy green tone, but sometimes the fuel to deliver them… well, not so much. But this story from the Nelson Star in British Columbia says a Canadian organic grocery supply is working biodiesel into its delivery trucks to make those greens truly green.

Kootenay foodies and entrepreneurs Paul and Clare Kelly of Winlaw are helping shoppers at organic grocers ‘green up’ their produce purchases with their biofuel shipping company — Revolution Biodiesel.

“With much discussion around kitchen tables and in the media about the carbon impacts of food miles, we sometimes feel a little helpless,” says Paul. “Traditionally these food miles equate with massive volumes of diesel fuel, used to move heavy fresh food from far away orchards to packing houses, distribution warehouses, then on to retailers and consumer markets.”

Perishable foods like produce; dairy, eggs and meat require additional diesel fuel for the truck’s refrigeration unit. According to Paul, a typical freight truck will use over 500 L of diesel fuel to bring a load from Cawston (Canada’s organic fruit capital) to Calgary.

Making use of their contacts from a combined 25 years in Calgary’s natural food sector, and fuel from their on-farm biodiesel plant, the Kellys invested in a refrigerated truck that they could run on 100 per cent post-consumer fryer oil derived biodiesel.

The Kellys are looking to expand, but that would also depend on the availability of the waste grease for the biodiesel feedstock. But in the meantime, they have enough of the green fuel on hand to run three truckloads of veggies between Calgary and British Columbia for the next year.

Biodiesel, International

U.S. Utility-Scale Solar Capacity Tops World

John Davis

Example of SunEdison Utility Solar ProjectA flurry of activity in the last couple of months of last year looks like it has pushed U.S. utility-scale solar capacity into first place worldwide. This article from Ciol.com says several projects appear to have pushed the Americans past the Chinese, who had taken the lead during part of 2013.

Recent figures from CAISO, California’s transmission grid operator, show major new capacity coming online between October and December from several of the world’s largest solar power stations. These include three partly-complete First Solar projects: Desert Sunlight being built for GE and others, which now has 470 MW connected out of an eventual 550 MW capacity; Topaz Solar Farm for MidAmerican (237 of 550 MW); and Exelon’s Antelope Valley (230 of 250 MW).

The latest figures also include several 100+MW projects now fully connected, including First Solar’s 290 MW Agua Caliente, SunPower’s 250 MW California Valley for NRG Energy, Sempra’s 165 MW Mesquite I, Tenaska’s 130 MW Imperial South and GE’s 127 MW Arlington Valley.

Coupled with substantial new capacity around the country in mid-size projects between 4 and 92 MW, this raised total US capacity to over 5 GW; more than double the 2.2 GW existing at the start of 2013.

Experts say another 12 GW of solar capacity is still in development for the U.S., although China is known for adding a lot of capacity in a short time with little notice.

Solar

Maine Wind Project Faces Crucial Vote This A.M.

John Davis

aquaventasmaineThe fate of an offshore wind project is in the hands of the Maine Public Utilities Commission this morning. This story from the Bangor Daily News says the floating turbine technology project is facing the commission vote on whether it can move forward under a long-term power contract.

Tuesday’s PUC meeting is not a public hearing. Only commissioners will be allowed to speak during the deliberations. They will also be able to ask questions of PUC staff about Maine Aqua Ventus’ project and the project’s term sheet, which details the conditions under which the consortium will sell an estimated 43,000 megawatt hours per year to the power grid from its two, six-megawatt turbines at a price of 23 cents per kilowatt hour. That’s about 14 cents more per kilowatt hour than the current standard offer rate set by the PUC.

The pilot project proposed for waters off Monhegan Island is the next step in the development of UMaine’s offshore wind technology. The university in June 2013 deployed a 1:8-scale model of VolturnUS, its prototype floating turbine, in waters of Castine.

Maine Aqua Ventus I would be a pilot for the future development of a 500-megawatt offshore wind farm project in the Gulf of Maine and possibly elsewhere. The goal is to achieve wind-generated electricity at 10 cents per kilowatt hour by the 2030s.

University of Maine economists say the $120 million project will create more than 300 full- and part-time jobs.

Wind

Feds Continue Crackdown in RIN Fraud Case

John Davis

scalesofjustice1More charges are coming against an Indiana company that defrauded investors and the government over Renewable Identification Numbers. FuelFix.com reports the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is bringing charges against Evansville-based Imperial Petroleum and its wholly owned subsidiary, Middletown, Ind.-based e-Biofuels for falsely generating more than 33.5 million invalid RINs.

The EPA alleges that e-Biofuels generated more than 33.5 million invalid fuel credits “from at least July 1, 2010, through June 2, 2011,” and transferred most of those fuel credits, also called Renewable Identification Numbers, to producers or importers of renewable fuels such as ethanol or biodiesel.

The agency’s notices offer e-Biofuels and Imperial Petroleum the chance to discuss the matter with the EPA.

Under the Clean Air Act, the EPA can assess a civil penalty of up to $37,500 per day, per violation.

These are the latest in a series of charges stemming from this past fall when Imperial Petroleum’s president, Jeffrey Wilson, and Craig Ducey, e-Biofuels’ former president, were indicted in the scam.

EPA, RINS

Researchers “Milk” Algae to Get Biodiesel Feedstock

John Davis

moheimaniUsually, when biodiesel producers are using algae to provide the feedstock oil to produce the green fuel, they have to destroy the algal cells to get the oil. But this article from Phys.org says Australian researchers might have found a way to “milk” the oil from the algae species Bortyococcus braunii so they can keep producing more biodiesel feedstock.

Murdoch University School of Veterinary and Life Sciences Algae R&D Centre researcher Dr Navid Moheimani and his team, in collaboration with the University of Tsukuba (Japan) have been investigating a non-destructive approach rendering the algae to be ‘milked’ and ‘remilked’ every five days.

By using a compatible solvent (n-heptane) they were able to extract oil from non-growing state algae repeatedly—producing significantly more hydrocarbon (oil) and requiring significantly less expensive nutrients (as opposed to rapid growth phase).

Dr Moheimani says B. braunii could replace its external hydrocarbon after five days [after milking] in cultures with one per cent CO2 addition.

“The overall external hydrocarbon productivity using non-destructive extraction was at least 20 per cent higher compared with B. braunii grown in conventional semi-continuous culture,” he says.

The researchers go on to say the efficiencies come from having not to regrow the algae after each extraction, which saves on fertilizer and waste biomass disposal costs, and they’ve been able to re-milk the algae for more than two months. The only real challenge might be getting those little milking stools and tiny buckets under each cell (but at least they don’t kick like an old holstein).

algae, Biodiesel

Ethanol Keeps Record Corn Crop’s Prices Up

John Davis

obrienA record corn crop usually means falling prices at market for U.S. farmers. But this article from BioFuels Journal says a new report from a Kansas State University agricultural economist says high demand from ethanol producers is supporting the prices despite the record-high 13.9 billion bushels of corn last year.

“The markets responded positively to the corn data,” said Dan O’Brien, crops marketing specialist with K-State Research and Extension, referring to gains posted in corn futures after the Jan. 10 release of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Crop Production 2013 Summary.

“The corn production number (at 13.9 billion bushels) came in at the low end of market analysts’ estimates.

“That coupled with (USDA’s estimated) increases in feed and ethanol usage had the effect of lowering projected carryout stocks.”

“We still have a very large crop, but this demand adds a bit of support and might give producers at least marginally attractive selling opportunities,” said O’Brien, who is based at K-State’s Northwest Research-Extension Center in Colby.

News of the report on Jan. 10 immediately helped push corn prices 17 to nearly 20 cents higher per bushel.

Corn carryout was at 1.631 billion bushels, which was also below analysts’ expectations.

corn, Ethanol, Ethanol News

Iowa U.S. Senate Candidates Support Biofuels

John Davis

ia-rfaConsidering the state’s significant role in biofuels and renewable energy, there’s little surprise that primary candidates for the Iowa U.S. Senate seat are expressing their support of the green fuels. The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) says its 2014 Iowa U.S. Senate Primary Candidate Renewable Fuels Survey shows there’s strong, bipartisan support for renewable fuels among the state’s top candidates.

The full results and responses from candidates U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley, Sam Clovis, state Sen. Joni Ernst, and Mark Jacobs can be found here: http://www.iowarfa.org/2014IRFACandidateSurveys.php. Matt Whitaker informed IRFA he would not be returning the survey.

“Literally tens of thousands of Iowans are invested in or directly employed by the renewable fuels industry, and they deserve to know where the candidates stand on these important issues,” stated IRFA Policy Director Grant Menke. “It’s great to see every candidate who responded showed strong support for ethanol and biodiesel, demonstrating renewable fuels issues are important to Iowa’s future.”

In December, the IRFA held an Iowa GOP U.S. Senate Primary Candidate Renewable Fuels Forum where candidates Sam Clovis and Mark Jacobs answered questions on specific renewable fuels issues. Video of that forum is available here.

Biodiesel, biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Iowa RFA, News, politics

Lignol Ups Ownership of Territory Biofuels to 100%

John Davis

Lignol Energy logoCanada-based Lignol Energy Corp. is taking 100 percent control of Australia’s largest biodiesel producer, Territory Biofuels Ltd. (TBF). This article from Biodiesel Magazine says Lignol already had a controlling stake (55 percent) in the 37-million-gallon refinery.

TBF owns a large-scale biorefining facility located in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia, which includes a Lurgi-designed biodiesel plant and the largest glycerin refinery in Australia. The facility was commissioned in 2008 at a cost of A$80 million, along with 38 million liters of related tankage, now leased by TBF. The biodiesel plant is the largest in Australia with a rated capacity of 140 million litres per year. The plant was originally built to run on palm oil and food-grade vegetable oil, however the plant was shut down in 2009 due to challenging technical and economic conditions. TBF is in the process of raising funds to restart the existing facility utilizing environmentally certified, refined, bleached and deodorized palm oil. In 2015, TBF plans to integrate new feedstock pretreatment technologies and catalysts to process a broader range of feedstocks such as lower quality tallow, used cooking oil and palm sludge oil; a waste product from palm oil mill extraction.

The deal is expected to be finalized by Jan. 31, 2014.

Biodiesel, International