9 Propane Conversion Centers Join Alliance AutoGas

Joanna Schroeder

Nine new propane conversion centers have joined the Alliance AutoGas, a U.S. distributor of PRINS autogas technologies. New members include:

  • Benna Ford, Superior, Wisconsin
  • R. Anthony Enterprises, Marion, Ohio
  • MRT Manufacturing, Forest Hills, Virgina
  • NAEU North American Upfitters, Hooksett, New Hampshire
  • Northside Auto & Truck Service Watertown, Wisconsin
  • Clean Car Conversions, Indianapolis, Indiana
  • NTC Delta Transportation, Greenville, Mississippi
  • Gary Sapp Automotive, Pensacola, Florida
  • Sherwood Ford of Salisbury, Salisbury, Maryland

Alliance AutoGas Services and NetworkAlliance AutoGas coordinates propane autogas vehicle conversions, installs refueling infrastructure and provides ongoing vehicle maintenance support and training, through a network of more than 90 member companies and conversion centers throughout North America.

“It is of the highest importance that Alliance AutoGas provides a quality support network and keep the vehicles running on the road,” said Stuart Weidie, president of Alliance AutoGas.

Brendan Dunican, sales representative of North American Equipment Upfitters, Inc., added, “The Alliance AutoGas Group is important because it brings together businesses that have common goals and interests in the green initiative (that would normally have no interaction). We (NAEU) working as a conversion center are diversifying our business while maintaining a sense of environmental responsibility. Cleaner gas makes for a cleaner world and future.”

And Northside Auto and Truck Service’s John Mason, president, said they joined because, “Our fleet managers tell us that domestically produced, clean propane that is easier on their pocketbooks are important to them. We are pleased to be a part of the Alliance AutoGas network, enabling our fleets to meet their expectations,”

Propane

Mewah Acquiring Malaysian Biodiesel Plant

John Davis

mewahlogoMewah International, a palm oil refiner in Malaysia, will buy the biodiesel assets of Gomedic Sdn. Bhd for $13 million. Biodiesel Magazine reports the assets include 25,055 square meters of land, with a lease expiring in 2109, and a 30 MMgy biodiesel production facility.

According to Mewah International, the biodiesel plant is strategically located in the vicinity of the company’s largest palm oil refinery in Pulau Indah Industrial Park, Westport, Malaysia. The investment is expected to further consolidate the group’s position as an integrated palm oil processor.

The deal is projected to be finished early next year. Mewah is one of the largest palm oil processor in the world.

Biodiesel, International

Minnesota Gets First Biodiesel Blender Pumps

John Davis

StaplesEnterprise1Minnesota gets its first biodiesel blender pumps with some help from the Minnesota Soybean Research & Promotion Council (MSR&PC). Staples Enterprises in Heron Lake has the pumps offering up to 20 percent biodiesel blends.

“The store and the blender pumps have actually been in operation since January and we’re promoting biodiesel now during our fall celebration,” said Daric Zimmerman, Retail Marketing Director for Staples Enterprises. “With these pumps, we now carry up to five blends of biodiesel here at our Heron Lake store.”

Biodiesel, made primarily from the oil of Minnesota-grown soybeans, has been successfully added to every gallon of diesel sold in the state. Biodiesel is the only domestically produced, commercially available fuel that meets the criteria of an advanced biofuel. Biodiesel can be used in existing engines and fuel injection equipment in blends up to 20 percent with no modifications.

According to Zimmerman, it was important for Staples Enterprises to continue their support of the local markets in which they operate. “We felt that the installation of these blender pumps helped further show our commitment to the area and the local producers.”

Officials point out that the pumps gives customers more choices in their fuel options.

Biodiesel, blends, Soybeans

AP Story Causing Stir Before Release

Cindy Zimmerman

The ethanol industry has gone on the offensive to defend itself against an Associated Press “investigative report” that has yet to be released for publication.

fuels-americaFuels America held a conference call today about the article which is embargoed until after midnight but was circulated last week on the internet. The call included Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) Vice President of Research and Analysis Geoff Cooper and Leroy Perkins, an Iowa farmer who was quoted in the AP story.

Perkins says he was contacted by AP reporters in July to talk about “the county fair, along with absentee, out-of-state state landlords and of course, water quality.” During the course of the interview, one of the reporters asked him what he thought about ethanol. “I told them I was for ethanol, I believe in it and we use it in our vehicles and equipment all the time … because it’s a product of the land,” he said. He never expected his interview would be for a “story to put down ethanol.”

Cooper and the RFA have put together a Counterpoint Fact Sheet on AP story which refutes at least 16 direct quotes from the draft article and he says industry representatives have been in touch with the news agency. “There has been some effort to get these factual inaccuracies corrected,” said Cooper. “If the story we saw that was posted last week is the same story that gets rolled out tomorrow morning, that tells us the AP just isn’t concerned about running a factual story.”

The Associated Press supplies content to thousands of print, internet, radio and television outlets around the world.

Listen to a conference call on the AP article here:AP ethanol story fact check press call

Audio, Environment, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA

AP Story Fact Checking

Cindy Zimmerman

apA yet-to-be officially published “investigative report” by the Associated Press is causing an uproar in the ethanol industry which is responding ahead of time with fact checking on the article.

The article included interviews with several industry leaders and farmers who are disturbed by what they have read in advance copies. One of those interviewed at length by the AP reporter is Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Bob Dinneen.

ethanol-report-adIn this “Ethanol Report,” Dinneen challenges many of the reporters’ conclusions about the environmental impact of ethanol production. Ethanol Report on AP story

RFA Counterpoint Fact Sheet on AP story

Later today there will be a conference call with Geoff Cooper, the head of research and analysis at the Renewable Fuels Association, and Leroy Perkins, an Iowa farmer who was quoted in the AP story. Perkins was interviewed numerous times by AP journalists for the ethanol story and “believes his views on oil alternatives, land use and the environment were intentionally skewed to tell an inaccurate and one-sided story.”

Subscribe to “The Ethanol Report” with this link.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, Ethanol Report

Largest Solar Plant in Japan Launched

Joanna Schroeder

A 70 megawatt (MW) solar power plant in Kagoshima Prefecture, southern Japan has come online. The Kagoshima Nanatsujima Mega Solar Power Plant went online officially on November 1, 2013 and is being operated by a special purpose company established by Kyocera Corporation and six other companies to sell the electricity to a local utility under Japan’s feed-in-tariff (FIT) program. An inauguration ceremony was held recently to celebrate the country’s largest utility-scale solar power plant.

70MW Solar Power Generating System 1Following the Great East Japan Earthquake in March of 2011, interest in solar energy has risen as a viable way to resolve power supply issues. To help promote the use of renewable energy, the Japanese government launched a restructured FIT program in July 2012 which mandates that local utilities are required to purchase 100 percent of the power generated from solar installations of more than 10 kilowatts (kW) for a period of 20 years.

Kagoshima Mega Solar Power Corporation was established by Kyocera and six other companies in July 2012 to explore a new business model for utility-scale solar power generation. Under a financing plan devised by Mizuho Corporate Bank, the new company was tasked to develop and operate the 70MW solar power plant on land owned by IHI Corporation with the power generated to be purchased by Kyushu Electric Power Co. based on the FIT program. As the largest shareholder of the new company, the Kyocera Group was responsible for the supply of solar modules as well as part of the construction, and will also undertake maintenance of the system with Kyudenko Corporation.

In addition, a tour facility has been built adjacent to the 70MW plant that is open to the public and features a circular viewing room where visitors can observe the 290,000 solar panels from an elevated vantage point and enjoy the view of the ocean bay and grand Sakurajima volcano in the background. Display zones for visitors such as students and tourists provide information about environmental issues and the science behind photovoltaic energy generation.

Alternative energy, Electricity, International, Solar

BioEnergy Bytes

Joanna Schroeder

  • BioEnergyBytesDFIKEA has announced plans to nearly double the solar array atop its Perryville, Maryland distribution center, the state’s largest such solar energy system. Installation of the new panels will begin this month with completion expected after the New Year. The 467,618-square-foot solar addition will consist of a 2.2-MW system, built with 7,337 modules, and will produce 2,695,355 kWh of electricity annually for the facility. Including the existing system, this distribution center’s total 4.9-MW solar installation of 25,913 panels soon will generate 6,092,533 kWh of clean electricity yearly.
  • Dyadic International has announced that it has been issued U.S. Patent No. 8,551,751 B2 entitled, “BX11 Enzymes Having Xylosidase Activity” by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The invention relates to methods of developing and producing novel enzymes, more specifically for the development of a variety of fungal enzymes. Also described in the patent is the encoding of nucleic acid molecules for such enzymes, compositions, recombinant, and genetically modified host cells, and methods of use, and also addresses methods to convert lignocellulosic biomass into fermentable sugars with enzymes that degrade the lignocellulosic material and novel combinations of enzymes, including those that provide a synergistic release of sugars from plant biomass.
  • First Power and Light, LLC (FPL) has signed a Letter of Intent to acquire SolPower Renewables, Inc. a Florida corporation in a stock only transaction. SolPower sells Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) services in Florida, South and Central America as well as the Caribbean. FPL intends for SolPower to operate as a wholly owned subsidiary allowing it to maintain its focus on these geographic areas that are not currently serviced by FPL.
  • Ennovor Biofuels has appointed a new chairman, managing director and plant manager. Chairman John Markham will take responsibility for guiding the strategic development of the business. David Frohnsdorff has been appointed managing director to coordinate all aspects of the company’s production, sales, feedstock development and purchasing, as well as fund raising and infrastructure development for the group. New plant manager David Jackson will manage plant operations.
Bioenergy Bytes

Blenders’ Credit Helps Biodiesel’s Bottom Line

John Davis

FutureFuel1Another biodiesel producer is showing a pretty good bottom line compared to last year’s figures. On the heels of last week’s report from Renewable Energy Group (REG) of its record-setting third quarter, FutureFuel Corp. shows a similarly strong period as well. The St. Louis Business Journal reports FutureFuel has third-quarter net income of $15.3 million, up 22 percent from the prior-year period, thanks to a recovered biodiesel industry helped by the $1-a-gallon blenders’ credit.

The company reported revenue of $121.1 million, up 37 percent from the prior-year period.

Revenue from biofuels was $77.4 million, up 61 percent from the prior-year period. That revenue accounted for 64 percent of total revenue in the third quarter of 2013 as compared to 54 percent in the third quarter of 2012.

Sales quantities in the third quarter also increased due to the reinstatement of the federal blenders’ credit in January compared to the third quarter of 2012 when the blenders’ credit was not available. Both the $1 biodiesel blenders credit and agri-biodiesel production credits are set to expire on Dec. 31.

“The record performance resulting from strong margins in the biofuel segment and continued solid performance from our chemical segment is gratifying,” FutureFuel President Lee Mikles said in a statement. “Like the rest of the biofuel industry, we realize the importance that continued support from our legislatures in the Renewable Fuel Mandate and the federal blenders’ credit has on our biodiesel business.”

FutureFuel Corp. makes custom and performance chemicals and biofuels.

Biodiesel, Government

U.S. Electricity Mix is Changing

Joanna Schroeder

According to the most recent Today in Energy published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the mix of fuels used to generate the electricity in homes, factories and businesses across the U.S. has changed over the past few years. While coal remains in the lead, with all the grassroots efforts around ending coal use and as a result the decommissioning of coal plants across the country, the fossil fuel has lost share to other players including natural gas and non-hydroelectric renewables such as wind and solar.

Regional Electricity Use mapThe report show that the generation mix is not uniform across the country and varies significantly by region (EIA has divided the country into seven regions) depending on available resources and regional market prices. There are several factors that affect fuel mix in any given month including the region’s capacity, the delivered costs of fuels and system constraints.

Natural gas has gained market share from coal in much of the country, find the report, but this is less true in markets closer to the cheaper Powder River Basin coal in the West. Renewable sources are generally growing, especially in Texas and the West. Petroleum-fired electricity generation has been declining for several decades, but it can continue play an important role at rare times when other alternatives are not available.

EIA is planning on publishing a series of articles focused on each region and its electricity generation mix over the coming weeks.

Alternative energy, Electricity, Hydro, Solar, Wind

National Grid Salutes Veterans

Joanna Schroeder

Today is Veterans Day in the United States where the country comes together to thank those Americans who have risked or given their lives to keep the country safe. In recognition of this day, National Grid is highlighting its programs to attract and retain veteran employees including it participation in Troops to Energy Jobs. The program is an initiative in which National Grid has partnered with five other energy companies across the country, and the Center for Energy Workforce Development, to develop an accelerated process for bringing military veterans into the energy industry workforce nationwide.

National Grid’s pilot program for Troops to Energy Jobs took place in Massachusetts, and employing veterans in the state remains a top priority for the company.

Troops-to-Energy-Jobs-logo“National Grid, along with other electric and gas companies, recognizes that veterans have spent their military careers protecting national security and are, among many things, battle-tested, self-motivated and safety-conscious—traits that translate well into a second career in the utility industry,” said Marcy Reed, president of National Grid in Massachusetts. “By hiring veterans into the company, we are ensuring the continued production and delivery of safe, reliable power to Massachusetts homes and businesses, and that service members are continuing to protect national security as they work to deliver a product that fuels our lives and powers our economy.”

In recent years National Grid said it has taken several steps to improve its opportunity for veteran outreach, including creating a dedicated veterans outreach specialist role within the company. This integrated specialist is responsible for veteran recruiting efforts and assists veterans as they transition into civilian positions within the energy field.

“Hiring veterans is a smart business decision. But, beyond that, it’s about pride and opportunity,” said Steven Spaeth, veterans outreach specialist for National Grid who is also a veteran himself. “Our industry has a role to play that is bigger than just hiring—we can help to pave the way for transitioning veterans into civilian jobs. Recognizing and supporting veterans once they are hired is critical to achieving a successful transition as we move our dedicated service members from the front lines to the power lines.”

National Grid also has its own Veterans Employee Resource Group (VERG) to help implement the Troops to Energy Jobs national template in all its service territories. This group of 185 members is strongly involved with recruitment and outreach efforts that encompass National Grid’s Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Upstate NY and Downstate NY businesses. The company’s VERG provides ongoing support to veteran employees, assists the Human Resources Department by reviewing resumes for candidates who are veterans, and maintains a visible presence in local communities, including attending career fairs to recruit other veterans.

National Grid works with the Department of Labor in Massachusetts as well as at local One-Stops in its efforts to recruit veterans. The company also works closely with veterans organizations such as the Office of Veterans Affairs, directing candidates to the Troops to Energy Jobs website for assistance in translating military skills to those needed in energy jobs. The company will often tweet job openings and veteran-themed resources as part of its effort to reach as many veterans in as many different ways as possible.

Alternative energy, bioenergy, Electricity