BioEnergy News - Last 20 News Articles with full text

E. coli engineered to make convenient 'drop-in' biofuel

2010-07-30T11:56:33+02:00 GMT

Genetically modified bacteria that munch on sugar to produce refinable fuels could bring down the cost of switching to cleaner energy.

Ethanol producer Green Plains posts improved results

2010-07-30T11:16:59+02:00 GMT

America’s fourth largest ethanol producer, Green Plains Renewable Energy, Inc., has boosted its income for the first half of the year to $24.3 million.

The achievement marks a turnaround for the company based in Omaha, Nebraska, which made an $8.7 million loss in the first six months of 2009.

Acquisition of two ethanol plants in its home state last July have helped swell revenues to $879.8 million so far in 2010, compared to $505.7 million in the sane period last year.

Current Biofuels Provide An Important Stepping Stone To Biofuels Made From Wood Feedstocks

2010-07-30T11:12:13+02:00 GMT

The Executive Officer of the Bioenergy Association of New Zealand (BANZ), Brian Cox, welcomed the report released yesterday by the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment but said that if we are to achieve the potential for biofuels from wood we need to first consolidate the demand for biofuels produced from current feedstocks.

Biomass Park holds groundbreaking

2010-07-30T11:08:25+02:00 GMT

VONORE - The technology for turning large quantities of biomass such as corn cobs and switchgrass into fuel took a big step toward large-scale production with the groundbreaking Thursday on a "one of kind" Biomass Innovation Park.

The new park - on 21 acres next to the Genera/DuPont Danisco cellulosic ethanol demonstration-scale biorefinery in the Niles Ferry Industrial Park here - is a significant next step, said Dr. Kelly Tiller, CEO and president of Genera Energy.

Suzano to invest $800 million to build bioenergy facitiites

2010-07-30T11:04:44+02:00 GMT

Moscow -- Brazilian pulp and paper producer Suzano Papel e Celulose plans to invest up to $800 million to create a bioenergy business unit, as PaperAge reported.

The unit, which would be known as Suzano Energia Renovavel, would build three plants that would generate electricity through the use of timber pellets, the company said in a securities filing. Each facility would have a capacity of 1 million tonnes, Suzano said, adding that the plants are expected to start operations between 2013 and 2014.

Northeast Biomass Conference & Expo panel highlights export markets

2010-07-30T11:00:40+02:00 GMT

Inbicon is demonstrating its cellulosic ethanol from straw process in Kalundborg, Denmark with its Inbicon Biomass Refinery technology.

The 1.4 MMgy project is a springboard for the company’s 20 MM gy design and the focal point of a presentation by Tom Corle, founder of the G-Team, which is marketing Inbicon’s biomass refinery, during a panel at Biomass Magazine’s Northeast Biomass Conference & Expo Aug. 4-6 in Boston.

Biofuels could increase food production, says report

2010-07-30T10:57:20+02:00 GMT

OUAGADOUGOU, BURKINA FASO -- Planting biofuel crops in Africa need not damage capacity to grow food and could even enhance food security, according to a controversial review prepared for the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA).

The report, with case studies on six countries in East, West and southern Africa, concludes that bioenergy production can expand across the continent and provide income and energy to farmers without displacing food crops.

Colorado firm turns cellulosic biomass into jet fuel

2010-07-30T10:43:58+02:00 GMT

Renewable chemicals and advanced biofuels developer Gevo has said it has successfully produced jet fuel from cellulosic biomass.

The company, which is funded with a $1.8 million grant from the US Departments of Energy and Agriculture Biomass R&D Program, said it converted fermentable sugars from cellulosic biomass into isobutanol, which was converted to isobutylene and paraffinic kerosene.

Colorad0-based Gevo is using a biocatalyst licensed from Cargill to develop biorefinery systems.

Subsidies for Renewables, Biofuels Dwarfed by Supports for Fossil Fuels

2010-07-30T10:40:33+02:00 GMT

NEW YORK -- New research from Bloomberg New Energy Finance reveals that despite many platitudes and pledges, governments of the world are spending substantially more on subsidizing dirty forms of energy than on renewables and biofuels.

In fact, support for cleaner sources is dwarfed by the help the oil, coal, and other fossil fuel sectors receive.

Partnership agreed to develop biomass gasification plants

2010-07-30T10:32:04+02:00 GMT

Colorado company Vista International Technologies, Inc., has announced plans to develop biomass-to-energy projects across the US and abroad.

The firm, which has a patented gasification technology for converting biomass or waste to energy, is teaming up with biomass feedstock specialist Emerald Energy LLC on the project.

The two firms have signed a letter of intent to use Emerald Energy’s “MegaFlora” short-rotation trees for a series of biomass power plants.

Europe Lagging U.S. and China in Developing Biofuels, Novozymes CEO Says

2010-07-30T10:27:56+02:00 GMT

Europe is lagging the U.S., China and Brazil in developing biofuels for transportation because of a lack of political direction, Novozymes A/S Chief Executive Officer Steen Riisgaard said.

Biogasoline sales to resume next month

2010-07-30T10:23:55+02:00 GMT

An ethanol gasoline product will be sold in five large cities in Vietnam next month, nearly two years after its sales were halted due to the lack of quality standards for biofuel, the producer said Thursday.

E5 gasoline, a blend of 5 percent ethanol and 95 percent gasoline, will be retailed at VND15,450 per liter, slightly lower than prices of the popular A92 gasoline, local news website VnExpress reported, citing PetroVietnam Oil Corporation.

The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment advocates planting millions of hectares of pine forest to produce bio-fuel

2010-07-30T10:19:12+02:00 GMT

The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment advocates planting millions of hectares of pine forest to produce bio-fuel.

A report tabled in Parliament on Thursday by Commissioner Jan Wright said current biofuels made from waste meat tallows, whey and algae will always be limited by a lack of supply.

Dr Wright said only fuels made from wood could properly replace diesel in this country.

Cow-a-bella: making eco-friendly diesel fuel from butter

2010-07-29T11:35:21+02:00 GMT

The search for new raw materials for making biodiesel fuel has led scientists to an unlikely farm product — butter.

In a new study in ACS' bi-weekly Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, they report that butter could be used as an eco-friendly feedstock, or raw material, for making diesel fuel.

Isolux Corsan Awarded a Contract for the Construction of an Ethanol Plant in Colombia

2010-07-29T11:29:19+02:00 GMT

MADRID -- Isolux Corsan has signed a contract with the Colombian company Bioenergy, 85% held by local oil company Ecopetrol SA, for the construction of an industrial complex under a turnkey contract, including a plant for the production of bioethanol from sugar cane, with a processing capacity of 2,100,000 tons of cane per year, a 40 MW co-generation plant using bagasse or sugar cane waste and other facilities for the milling, distillation and production of vinasse using the same raw material.

VIASPACE CEO Discusses Giant King Grass at Industrial Biotechnology Congress in China

2010-07-29T11:23:04+02:00 GMT

Irvine, CA, USA -- VIASPACE Inc., a clean energy company growing Giant KingTM Grass as a low-carbon, renewable biomass crop, reported that Chief Executive Dr. Carl Kukkonen made an invited presentation at the Third Annual World Congress of Industrial Biotechnology held in Dalian, China, July 25-27, 2010, where more than 500 business executives, industry leaders, technical experts, government officials and investors attended from around the world.

EU shows growth in ethanol production, use

2010-07-29T11:16:37+02:00 GMT

After strong growth approaching 60 percent in 2008, European fuel ethanol production continued to increase growing 31 percent in 2009.

“This gives a clear signal to all doubters that European bioethanol is here to stay and to fulfill its increasingly important role in curbing greenhouse gas emissions and in contributing to energy security,” eBIO, the European ethanol association, said in releasing the numbers.

Congress nod on ethanol imports sought

2010-07-29T11:08:46+02:00 GMT

To ensure smooth-sailing implementation of the Biofuels Law, the Department of Energy (DoE) is seeking resolution from Congress that shall explicitly state that importation of ethanol will still be allowed until local production steps up to meet supply for mandated blends.

Batangas power plant eyed

2010-07-29T10:48:06+02:00 GMT

DMCI Holdings Inc., the holding company of the Consunji family, plans to put up a new 600-megawatt power plant in Calaca, Batangas worth $760 million.

DMCI president Isidro Consunji told reporters after the annual stockholders’ meeting Wednesday that several firms, including Manila Electric Co. and Marubeni Corp. of Japan, had expressed interest to team up with the company to build the plant.

Soot emissions key factor in global warming, says expert

2010-07-29T10:38:57+02:00 GMT

A new study has found that the quickest, best way to slow the rapid melting of Arctic sea ice is to reduce soot emissions from the burning of fossil fuel, wood and dung.

According to Stanford researcher Mark Z. Jacobson analysis, soot is second only to carbon dioxide in contributing to global warming. But, he said, climate models to date have mischaracterized the effects of soot in the atmosphere.

Because of that, soot's contribution to global warming has been ignored in national and international global warming policy legislation, he said.