Broadwind Energy has announced that it is making management changes to better align the business for growth. The company will eliminate the chief operating officer position. As a result, Jesse E. Collins, Jr., executive vice president and chief operating officer, and interim president of the Company’s Services business, will be leaving Broadwind. Collins will continue leading the Services business until the end of the year. The Company has also named Mark T. Skeen, currently vice president of Abilene tower operations, to the newly created role of vice president and general manager of the Company’s industrial weldments business.- SunPower Corp. has celebrated the production milestone of the 500,000 solar panel manufactured at the Flextronics facility in Milpitas, California. Dedicated in April 2011, the plant employs more than 100 people and produces between 80 and 90 megawatts (MW) annually, depending on the size of the solar panel being produced.
- Solar electric retrofitting Utah businesses and homes offers powerful returns on investment and backup electricity in case of emergency. That’s the assertion of a distinguished group of energy experts set to discuss solar energy return on investment on November 8th at the Provo Marriott. At no cost to the public (RSVP required), panelists will chart the course for installing and financing solar systems for the quickest payback. Event sponsors seek to educate the public in advance of the January 2014 Utah Solar Incentive auction offering a limited number of large rebate incentives for small business.
- Wind Works Power Corp. has announced the execution of a Power Purchase Agreement for its 100% owned Thunder Spirit Project, located in Hettinger, North Dakota. The Power Purchase Agreement with Montana-Dakota Utilities Co. (MDU), headquartered in Bismarck, is for approximately 105 megawatts (MW) of installed capacity of wind turbine generators. The project will deliver clean, renewable energy to Montana-Dakota’s electric grid at their 230kV Hettinger Substation. The project is scheduled to reach commercial operation in the fourth quarter of 2015.
Go Riteway Delivers Propane Buses
GO Riteway has purchased 10 new Blue Bird Propane-Powered Vision school buses and 10 Micro Bird buses for Oak Creek-Franklin Joint School District. The company, which transports 5,500 Oak Creek students each day, said they now offer an environmentally friendly bus ride that lowers fuel costs for the community.
“Congratulations to the citizens of Oak Creek, who will benefit from cleaner air and lower fuel costs with this safe and reliable alternative fuel in their school buses,” said Ron Bast, president of GO Riteway, during an open house at their Oak Creek facility. “Over their lifetime, these school buses will release 1.6 million fewer pounds of carbon dioxide emissions in your community.”
The open house attracted many local officials, including Dr. Sara Burmeister, Oak Creek’s school superintendent, and Steven Kurkowski, alderman for Oak Creek. A fueling demonstration allowed participants to learn firsthand the ease and quick speed of refueling a school bus with propane autogas.
“School districts around the nation are eager for cleaner, lower emissions solutions that also work with their budgets. The Blue Bird Propane-Powered Vision and Micro Bird meet these needs, with lower fuel and maintenance costs, decreased noise, and environmental benefits,” said Phil Horlock, president and CEO of Blue Bird Corporation. “Blue Bird’s propane-powered buses are a smart choice for any contractor or school district.”
The 78-passenger Blue Bird Propane-Powered Visions and 30-passenger Micro Bird buses meet all applicable School Bus Federal Motor Vehicle Safety standards, and Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resources Board certifications, and uses the latest advancements in alternative fuel technology, including the ROUSH CleanTech liquid propane autogas fuel system and the Ford 6.8-liter engine.
Mercedes Offers Biodiesel-Compatible Engines Again
Biodiesel lovers might soon be singing a the line from the old Janis Joplin song, “Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz?” The German car maker will once again offer its line of biodiesel-compatible vehicles. This news release from EINNews.com says that after several years of not selling its BlueTEC diesel engines, the clean burners are back.
Improving the design and returning stronger than ever, the Mercedes-Benz line of BlueTEC engines can now properly utilize B5 biofuel. Biodiesel-consuming engines are available on some of their most popular vehicles including the GLK, M, GL, and E-Class. Providing emission passing ratings and some of the highest fuel economy marks for their respective classes, the Mercedes-Benz BlueTEC engines are great options for drivers searching for an alternative to gas-powered vehicles.
The story goes on to point out that this is the latest development in Mercedes’ long history of offering diesel-powered passenger vehicles, which most diesels are already compatible with biodiesel. The latest advances in the BlueTEC engine allow it to run both ultralow-sulfur fuel and B5 biodiesel.
Darling Buys Biodiesel Feedstock Renderer
Texas-based Darling International Inc. has closed the deal to buy a Canadian company dealing with rendering and biodiesel. This company news release says Darling bought Rothsay, the rendering and biodiesel division of Maple Leaf Foods Inc., for about $618 million.
Darling International Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Randall Stuewe said, “We are excited to add the Rothsay assets and employees to our portfolio. Together we will bring new solutions and opportunities to our many customers across North America.”
Darling International Inc. is the largest and only publicly traded provider of rendering and bakery residuals recycling solutions to the nation’s food industry. The Company recycles beef, poultry and pork by-product streams into useable ingredients such as tallow, feed-grade fats, meat and bone meal, poultry meal and hides. The Company also recovers and converts used cooking oil and commercial bakery residuals into valuable feed and fuel ingredients. These products are primarily sold to agricultural, pet food, leather, oleo-chemical and biodiesel manufacturers around the world.
Earlier this year, Texas-based Darling opened a joint venture renewable diesel plant with energy giant Valero in Louisiana. That plant also uses animal fat to make the renewable diesel, as well as using waste cooking oil and corn oil.
EPA Response to Calls for Lowering RFS
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has issued a statement regarding the AAA call to lower the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), stressing that no decision has yet been made on for 2014.
The Obama Administration remains firmly committed to furthering the development of all biofuels – including corn-based ethanol, cellulosic biofuel, and advanced biofuel – as part of the President’s commitment to developing a clean energy economy. Biofuels are a critical part of the President’s all of the above energy strategy that is reducing America’s dependence on oil and creating jobs across the country. At this point, EPA is only developing a draft proposal. The agency has made no final decision on the proposed renewable fuel standards for 2014. And no decisions will be made on the final standards without a full opportunity for all stakeholders to comment on the EPA’s proposed 2014 renewable fuel standards and be heard on how to best foster a growing biofuels industry that takes into account infrastructure- and market-related factors.
Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) president and CEO Bob Dinneen said today that it did appear EPA is planning on lowering the Renewable Volume Obligation (RVO) for 2014, which would be a “reversal of stunning proportions” that effectively “guts the program.”
Dinneen: Lowering RFS Would be Mistake
Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) president and CEO Bob Dinneen fears “the Obama Administration is about to make a huge mistake” in lowering the volume requirements for ethanol under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).
In an interview for “The Ethanol Report,” Dinneen says it does appear that the Environmental Protection Agency is planning on changing the Renewable Volume Obligation (RVO) for 2014. “I find that hard to believe because this administration has been so strongly supportive of the RFS, of farmers, of a growing renewable fuels industry … this would be a reversal of stunning proportions,” he said. “It guts the program.”
Dinneen notes that EPA has not yet made the proposal for 2014 and once that happens there will be at least a 30 day comment period. “They’re supposed to have a final rule by November 30, but nobody in this town expects that to happen,” he said. “I do anticipate they will have the rule proposed sometime this month or early next.”
Dinneen also talks about the RFA response to AAA comments about the safety of E15 and how a recent NREL study proves it is safe in this Ethanol Report interview Ethanol Report with RFA's Bob Dinneen
Subscribe to “The Ethanol Report” with this link.
REG Opens Mason City Biodiesel Plant
Renewable Energy Group today formally opened the company’s recently acquired biodiesel refinery in Mason City, Iowa. The biodiesel company also announced the start of a $20 million project to upgrade the plant to a multi-feedstock facility.
REG completed the acquisition of the former Soy Energy, LLC refinery on July 31, 2013. REG immediately began efforts to repair and re-start the plant and began producing biodiesel on October 1.
“REG Mason City fits into our existing network of biodiesel plants very well and is an ideal location to bring in raw materials for biodiesel production, is a good distribution point, and is sited well to serve our customers and terminals,” said Daniel J. Oh, President and CEO of Renewable Energy Group, Inc. “As we continue to grow as a company and an industry, we are dedicated to our communities like Mason City, and providing America with advanced biofuel.”
Brad Albin, REG Vice President, Manufacturing told the crowd about the upgrades the company will make. “With these upgrades, we will be able to utilize lower cost raw materials like inedible corn oil from ethanol production, used cooking oil and animal fats, with the majority coming from a close proximity to Mason City,” Albin said. “This will give REG Mason City the ability to deliver the highest quality product available, in line with the REG quality standards.”
REG now has eight active biorefineries in four states, with Mason City being the company’s third Iowa facility, joining the company’s first refinery in Ralston and a plant in Newton. The company also has a multi-feedstock biorefinery in nearby Albert Lea, Minnesota, where a $21 million multi-feedstock upgrade was just recently completed. REG also has two refineries in both Illinois and Texas respectively. The REG-owned biodiesel production fleet has an annual production capacity of 257 million gallons.
Ethanol Industry Refutes AAA Claims
The American Automobile Association (AAA) is calling on the Environmental Protection Agency to “lower the amount of ethanol required to be blended into gasoline for 2014” in order to “protect drivers by preventing a possible surge in gas prices or the increased use of potentially damaging E15 gasoline.”
The ethanol industry wasted no time in responding. “The Energy Department and more than 40 studies say that more than 60 percent of cars on the road today can safely use E15,” said Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) president Bob Dinneen of the blend that has been approved by the EPA for 2001 and newer vehicles. “More than 40 million miles have been driven on E15 without a single complaint.”
Dinneen says RFA has reached out to AAA with data that proves E15’s safety, including the recently released NREL review of E15 studies but so far have been rebuffed. “Why is AAA resistant to data that benefits a nation of drivers?” Dinneen asked.
ShockWave Reactor Helps Biodiesel Efficiency
A new video demonstration is showing how the new ShockWave Power Biodiesel Reactor (SPR) is making production of the green fuel more efficient. Hydro Dynamics, Inc. (HDI) posted the video to show how its product will make the transesterification process go better.
Although not a complete replacement for seeing the technology in person, video is becoming commonplace on the web to demonstrate technology and quickly convey information to customers. Our other SPR cavitation videos have been viewed over 750,000 times showing everything from simple cavitation bubbles to gas-liquid mixing to an ethanol extraction animation http://hydrodynamics.com/about-us/videos/.
The ShockWave PowerTM Reactor (SPR) is manufactured by Hydro Dynamics, Inc., a world leader in process intensification reactors. Together with World Energy, Hydrodynamics, Inc. offers reactor systems to the biodiesel industry for every size of plant and the expertise in biodiesel processing necessary to implement ShockWave PowerTM Reactor in any new or existing biodiesel production facility. With over 500 million gallons of annual reactor capacity now sold, the ShockWave Power Reactor is setting a new standard for efficient biodiesel production.
More information is available on the company’s biodiesel page.
Pentti Itkonen Chosen as Energy Ambassador
EnergyVaasa, the largest energy cluster in the Nordic countries, recently chose 25 year old engineering student Pentti Itkonen as their Energy Ambassador. In a press conference held at Citec’s premises at Navi Mumbai, India, it was announced that Itkonen will embark on a global tour, beginning in Kittilä in Northern Finland to Norway, USA, Ecuador, Brazil, Spain, Thailand and India. Pentii will spend a week at each of the chosen countries and meet and hope to influence key stakeholders of renewable and green technologies.
In this journey, Pentii Itkonen could experience a project where experts from many countries work together to come up with the best solutions to the customer’s needs. Thus, Itkonen became more acquainted with one of Waste-to-Energy power plant projects designed by Citec, a company that provides multi-discipline engineering and information management services to the Energy and Power industry, and other technology-dependent industries. In this project, the customer is from Switzerland and the plant is built in the UK.
Pentti Itkonen said, “It’s amazing to be in Incredible India, I have to admit that this has probably been the destination I’ve been looking forward to the most. The people at Mumbai office have welcomed me with fascinating Hindu ceremonies and I was honoured to start off my week like that. It was interesting to discover how Citec is working globally and specially the Indian operations. We also discussed over a certain waste-to-energy project.”
One of the highlights of Itkonen’s visit was when Mr. Alexander Stubb, Finland’s Minister for European Affairs and Foreign Trade met with Citec’s senior management – Mr. Martin Strand, CEO, Mr, Nasir Mulani, Managing Director India, Mr Arun Tyagarajan, Director Citec India and the Energy Ambassador in Mumbai.
“In an agro-based country like India, Bio-power has a growing demand. Nevertheless, solar and wind power are also areas where the future is heading towards. Citec is also working on such projects. Aiming for a cleaner environment, we are proud to support the Energy Ambassador campaign,” said Mulani.
In addition to his exposure to Citec as a global company and its energy business in India, the Energy Ambassador also received insight into other aspects of India.