Two policy discussions currently underway in our nation's capitol will have significant implications for the biomass industry. The first, the renewable electricity standard included in first drafts of the American Clean Energy and Security Act, is a clear winner for our industry. The second, the rulemaking surrounding the renewable fuels standard enacted in the 2007 Energy Bill, has the potential to be incredibly disruptive.
 
 It is easy to see that a renewable electricity standard would be a welcome piece of legislation. Requiring 25 percent of the electricity available in the grid come from renewable sources is in many ways a biomass power mandate. When utilities are required to generate significant amounts of power renewably, they will ultimately turn to biomass. Biomass is widely distributed across this country, employs many people in its collection and handling, generates base-load quality power, and is relatively benign from a carbon perspective.
 
 The rulemaking surrounding the renewable fuels standard is a much more complicated situation, and the potential is there for it to significantly disrupt the largest biomass-to-liquid-fuels industry ever built. In question is indirect land-use change and whether deforestation in other parts of the world can be directly attributed to increased corn plantings to satisfy demand from ethanol producers. Some models, when including indirect land-use change, show corn ethanol as slightly more carbon intense than gasoline. Considering this, it's not impossible to envision a time when corn ethanol finds itself the odd fuel out. 
 
 Rightfully, the outcries and protests have already begun. U.S. Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., has introduced a bill that would heavily scrutinize the U.S. EPA's indirect land-use models and potentially prevent them from being used at all. 
 
 The most interesting aspect of Thune's bill, and one that could provide a new opportunity for our industry, is the portion of the bill that allows ethanol producers to apply for an individualized carbon score if they prove they have a production system with a lower carbon density. Utilizing biomass to satisfy the thermal requirements of an ethanol facility or using corn fertilized with biomass-derived ammonia would significantly reduce the carbon score at ethanol facilities employing these technologies.
 
 Biomass heat, power and fertilizers are all less carbon dense than their fossil fuel counterparts and corn ethanol may be the first industry to call upon biomass to reduce its carbon footprint. I doubt, however, that it will be the last. 
 
 Tim Portz is a business developer with BBI International's Community Initiative to Improve Energy Sustainability. Reach him at <a href="mailto:tportz@bbiinternational.com">tportz@bbiinternational.com</a> or (651) 398-9154.

Tim Portz business developer, BBI International

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Opportunity is Knocking

A network of scientists and universities in the U.S. and Brazil should help forge partnerships and collaboration in biofuels-related research.
 
 Funded by the U.S. State Department and coordinated by the Fulbright Commission, Brazil, the Brazil–U.S. Higher Education Network's Biofuel Network aims to promote awareness of research activities, improve communication, and develop and enhance scientific exchange between the two countries in the biofuels field, according to Fulbright Brazil.
 
 This is the first such program coordinated by Fulbright, according to Thais Rodrigues Coser, Fulbright secretariat–thematic networks coordinator. "I believe this network could help to not duplicate efforts," she said. "The basic objective is to work as a clearinghouse so people know what is going on in Brazil and in the U.S. in research."
 
 The Biofuel Network's Web page, www.brazil-usa-henetwork.org/biofuels, includes a forum, a virtual library and database with educational and research background, and contact information for members divided by area of interest. When collaboration begins, information about joint research projects, published articles, products, patents and other topics will be updated in the network and on the Web page, according to Fulbright. Network participants also will meet periodically for workshops.
 
 The network advisory boards, one in each of the two countries and made up of researchers from academic, federal and private sector firms, are taking applications for membership. 
 
 The registration form can be found on the Web site.
 
 Drawing Brazil and the U.S. together through a cohesive mechanism makes sense, said Andre Boehman, advisory board member from Pennsylvania State University. "There are more opportunities for contact and collaboration."
 
 The Brazil–U.S. Higher Education Network also will develop networks for research collaboration in the areas of environmental sciences and health, but partnerships in biofuels research will be especially beneficial, Coser said. The network also is expected to provide information and access to funding for research and projects. 
 
 The network initiative developed from a meeting in August 2007, when U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings and a U.S. university delegation visited Brazil to discuss areas of mutual interest. Together with Brazilian university rectors, the delegation identified the need for information sharing among higher education sectors in the two countries. 
 
 Board members will focus on nine subfields of biofuels research: feedstocks; biodiesel; alcohol fuels; hydrocarbons and synthetics; hydrogen; coproducts; engines and lubricants; life-cycle analysis; and environmental, social and economic sustainability, according to the Web site.
 
 The Biofuels Network advisory boards, which met for the first time in late February in Florida, established the first short course on biofuels technology offered to graduate students and professionals from both countries. It is slated for July 27 through Aug. 7 at the University of Sao Paulo Institute for Advanced Studies, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Forty participants, 20 from each country, will be admitted to the course, Coser said, and instructors also will hail from both countries. 
 
 The course is an important tool and vehicle for people who want to learn and discuss the best ways to serve the biofuels community, according to Michael Haas, of the USDA Agricultural Research Service center in Philadelphia and one of two network co-leaders. Information on the course and registration can be found on the Biofuel Network Web site. 
 
 "The Biofuel Network is intended to and very likely will be successful in bringing people together," Boehman said. That facilitated collaboration among researchers is the key benefit to the network, he added.

US-Brazil Biofuel Network brings researchers together

Posted May 28, 2009, at 8:07 a.m. CST 
 
 On May 21 the House Energy and Commerce Committee approved the American Clean Energy and Security Act, H.R. 2454, by a vote of 33-25. The legislation aims to create clean energy jobs, save consumers hundreds of billions of dollars in energy costs, enhance America's energy independence and cut global warming pollution. 
 
 The bill contains four titles designed to meet these goals: 
 
 • A clean energy title that promotes renewable sources of energy, carbon capture and sequestration technologies, clean electric vehicles, and the smart grid and electricity transmission. 
 
 • An energy efficiency title that increases energy efficiency across all sectors of the economy, including buildings, appliances, transportation and industry. 
 
 • A global warming title that places limits on emission of heat-trapping pollutants. This legislation would cut global warming pollution by 17 percent compared to 2005 levels in 2020, by 42 percent in 2030, and by 83 percent in 2050. 
 
 • A title that protects U.S. consumers and industry and promotes green jobs during the transition to a clean energy economy. 
 
 25x'25, an organization that seeks to produce 25 percent of our nation's energy from renewable resources by 2025, recently held a Webinar featuring an overview of H.R. 2454 as well as an assessment of alterations its members would like to see included in the final draft of the bill. The Webinar focused primarily on the carbon cap-and-trade components of the bill and how those components may affect those in the agricultural and forestry industries. 
 
 According to 25x '25 Caron Advisor Jeffery Frost, although a carbon cap-and-trade program will result in costs for all sectors of the U.S. economy, it will also offer opportunity to those in the agricultural and forestry industries. Under H.R. 2454 emissions from the agricultural and forestry industries would not be capped. However, those industries could realize significant revenue potential through the generation of carbon offsets that could be sold to regulated parties. 
 
 "We are perhaps the only sector that might actually have net benefits as a sector," Frost said. "We do have the voluntary participation in the offset market. So, the good news is that only the portions of our sector that can actually deliver offsets need to voluntarily engage in that behavior. Remember we are all subject to the costs whether we are capped or not, but the beneficial side is an option on our part." 
 
 However, there are many areas in which 25x '25 would like to see the legislation altered. According to Frost, those areas include how early adopters are treated by the legislation, the role of the USDA in the cap-and-trade program and biological sequestration offset rules. 
 
 "We find that [the legislation] is greatly underspecified when it comes to the details of offsets," he said. "We're of the opinion we need to fuller specify in the legislative language itself to ensure that we get the kind of outcomes we need that will serve both persons that provide the sequestration offsets and those persons buying the sequestration offsets, i.e. the capped sectors." 
 
 Now that the legislation has been approved by the House Energy and Commerce Committee, eight other House committees are expected to address the bill, including the House Agriculture Committee. "It appears that for the most part these committees will make short order of advancing the bill," said Ernie Shea, 25x'35 project coordinator. "We're not expecting much in the way of changes from the bulk of these committees, with the one exception of the House Agriculture Committee. At this point the chairman of the committee, Collin Peterson (D-Minn.), has been signaling that his committee is very concerned about a number of the fundamental components of this … climate change bill." 
 
 According to Shea, some of those eight committees are expected to hold hearings on the legislation, while House leaders have signaled they would like to pass the bill before the August recess. "The bottom line is that I don't think anyone has a very clear sense of when the bill is going to emerge or what it is going to look like," said Shea. Lawmakers in the U.S. Senate aren't expected to address the legislation until next year. 
 
 "25x'25 is working very closely with our partners as well as with some of these committees that will be further exploring the legislation to raise up the issues … where we see weakness, where we see deficiencies or lack of specificity," Shea continued. "We're trying to put those issues in front of policy makers so they have an opportunity to make adjustments going forward."
 
 SOURCE: ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE

25x'25 weighs in on cap-and-trade legislation

Posted June 8, 2009
 
 Responding to President Barack Obama's directive to expedite and increase the production of biofuels, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced that USDA met its 30-day deadline to help produce more energy from homegrown, renewable sources. 
 
 "Further developing the biofuels industry helps create jobs and stimulates rural economies, an important part of getting our economy back on track," said Vilsack. "President Obama and I are committed to advancing clean and renewable energy as it creates jobs domestically and boosts tax revenues at all levels of government." 
 
 On May 5, Obama asked USDA to expedite the biofuels provisions of the energy title of the 2008 Farm Bill within 30 days, including the following: 
 
 -Providing loan guarantees and grants for biorefineries; 
 -Expediting funding to encourage biorefineries to replace the use of fossil fuels in plant operations; 
 -Expediting funding to encourage production of next-generation biofuels; 
 -Expanding the Rural Energy for America Program; and 
 -Providing guidance and support for collection, harvest, storage, and transportation in biomass conversion facilities. 
 
 Details about USDA's recent efforts to support the biofuels industry are: 
 
 Loan guarantees for biorefineries: USDA is currently reviewing a $25 million loan guarantee application to retrofit a biodiesel refinery to produce second-generation biofuels. The funding of this venture will be the second such guarantee to be funded under the 2008 Farm Bill. In January, USDA awarded an $80 million loan guarantee for the production of cellulosic ethanol. A second round of applications received as part of an April 30, 2009 solicitation for applications is currently under review. These involve second- and third-generation biofuel technologies to produce cellulosic ethanol, biodiesel, and methane gas and electricity. Awards for the second round are projected for Sept. 15, 2009 
 
 Assistance for biorefineries replacing fossil fuels: USDA will provide up to $20 million to offer financial assistance to biorefineries to replace fossil fuels used to produce heat or operate biorefineries with renewable biomass. 
 
 Encourage production of next-generation biofuels: USDA will provide $30 million to provide payments to eligible agricultural producers to support and ensure an expanding production of advanced biofuels. 
 
 Rural Energy for America Program: USDA is now accepting applications for feasibility studies, loan guarantees, and grants for renewable energy systems and energy efficiency improvements as well as for applications to conduct energy audits on behalf of agriculture producers and rural small businesses. Funds will be used to assist agricultural producers and rural small businesses by conducting energy audits and providing recommendations and information on renewable energy development assistance and improving energy efficiency. These projects - energy audits and renewable energy systems development/energy efficiency improvements assistance - are designed to help agricultural producers and rural small businesses reduce energy costs and consumption and help meet the nation's critical energy needs. For more information on this program and application deadlines, visit www.rurdev.usda.gov. 
 
 Biomass Crop Assistance Program: USDA is launching a program that will provide compensation for the collection, harvest, storage, and transportation of biomass intended to meet the country's energy needs in a more sustainable manner. The program will provide financial assistance for delivery of eligible biomass material to conversion facilities that use biomass for heat, power, biobased products or biofuels. USDA, through the Farm Service Agency, will provide matching payments for collecting, harvesting, storing and transporting eligible materials at a rate of $1 for each $1 per dry ton paid by a qualified biomass conversion facility for the biomass. The matching payments will not exceed $45 per ton and material providers will be eligible for up to two years of payments. For more information on this program, visit www.fsa.usda.gov/energy.
 
 SOURCE: USDA

USDA meets Obama's 30-day biofuels directive

The biomass industry presents exciting new opportunities in renewable energy. As an emerging industry, there remains a lot of uncertainty around feedstock costs, supply and aggregation, technology and off-take contracts. Project finance is difficult in the best of times, but it is especially challenging in today's capital markets. The bright side is the amount of money flowing from the federal government into renewable energy in the form of grants and loan guarantees. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, or the stimulus package, has allocated billions to renewable energy, and biomass is one of the key focus areas. By leveraging these grant, loan guarantee and tax incentive programs, as described in the table on page 55, it is possible to get a well-planned and organized biomass project funded today. These government programs will bridge the gap in funding biomass projects until the industry matures and traditional capital becomes available. 
 
 The stages that projects go through in the financing life cycle and the types of capital available at each stage are shown in the project finance continuum table.
 
 Predevelopment Capital
 The first phase in the life cycle of a project is predevelopment. Predevelopment capital or risk capital is the first dollar amount raised for a project and, in the overall scope of the project, is relatively small. These dollars are used to determine the feasibility of the project. This can be the toughest to find or the easiest. If the founders have capital, are well-connected locally and/or the project has strong appeal locally, bringing in local investors can be less difficult.
 
 <center><img src="/images/upload/20090519045026.jpg" alt="" /></center>
 
 Development Capital
 Development capital is used for business planning, land acquisition, engineering, contracting with vendors and contractors, etc. The same attributes that bring in predevelopment capital can make raising development capital easier. Most project developers find it very difficult to raise development capital as the dollar amount is larger (up to several million dollars depending on the size of the project) and the risk is still high. In stronger economic times, investors and agricultural producers were willing to fund renewable energy development efforts locally. Friends, family and local/regional angel investors are still the most viable capital alternative at this point in the development cycle. Strategic investors with a reason to invest such as off-take or supply arrangements are worth pursuing as well. 
 
 With the amount of federal dollars available under the Farm Bill, Energy Bill and stimulus bill, grants are worth pursuing to fund predevelopment and development tasks. Federal grants that are available to renewable energy projects include Section 9008 grants (joint USDA and U.S. DOE) for advanced biofuels (noncorn cellulose) research and development, and demonstration plants. The deadline for the initial round for these grants has passed, but it is expected that additional grants will be announced this year. 
 
 Other DOE and USDA grants, such as biomass research and development, Renewable Energy for America Program grants and value-added producer grants, have been or will be announced. It is important to monitor funding announcements at www.grants.gov and state programs at <a href="http://www.dsireusa.org">http://www.dsireusa.org</a>. 
 
 Project Debt Financing
 Once the development equity has been raised, the next step is to find debt financing. One of the best alternatives in today's market is to pursue federal government guaranteed loans. There are many programs that provide government guaranteed loans through the Farm Bill, Energy Bill and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The U.S. government, through various agencies, provides the underlying guarantee; but loans are made by private commercial lenders. The lender must underwrite the loan and present it to the government agency for its approval to provide the guarantee. Lenders set the terms but must work within program parameters. The process can be tedious and time consuming, but a limited number of lenders understand and are willing to work with these programs. Feasibility studies are generally required for all government loan programs. 
 
 The government guarantees do not become effective until the project is complete and in operation; therefore, a construction loan must be procured.
 
 The major loan guarantee programs available for biomass projects are as follows:
 
 ›USDA Business & Industry Guaranteed Loans (B&I Loans) <a href="http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/busp/b&i_gar.htm">http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/busp/b&i_gar.htm</a> 
 
 ›USDA Renewable Energy for America Program (REAP) Guaranteed Loans <a href="http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/busp/9006loan.htm">http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/busp/9006loan.htm</a> 
 
 ›Biorefinery Assistance Program <a href="http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/busp/baplg9003.htm">http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/busp/baplg9003.htm</a> 
 
 ›DOE Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program <a href="http://www.lgprogram.energy.gov/features.html">http://www.lgprogram.energy.gov/features.html</a>
 
 The USDA B&I program has been around for many years and is well established. The purpose of both B&I and REAP loans is to assist farmer/producer owned and rural small businesses. Both loan programs require that the project be situated in a rural location-under 50,000 in population. The guarantees are on loans up to $25 million, and cover 60 percent to 85 percent of the loan amount depending on the size of the loan. Minimum tangible equity of 20 percent to 40 percent of the project cost is required, depending on the project. Renewable energy is an area of interest for REAP loans. The B&I loans program is funded and available now, and REAP funding announcements are expected at any time.
 
 The Biorefinery Assistance Program, also known as Section 9003 of the 2008 Farm Bill, focuses on advanced biofuels. Funds must be used to build or retrofit commercial-scale biorefineries to produce advanced biofuels (noncorn cellulose). The technology must be established or demonstrated as a viable commercial technology. The guarantees are for qualifying loans up to $250 million, not to exceed 80 percent of project costs. The current deadline for the second half of 2009 was April 30, and the next funding announcement for 2010 was expected in the fourth quarter of this year.
 
 The DOE Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program totals $6 billion. The government wants rapid deployment and is expected to announce the application process in May/June 2009. The loan program will provide loan guarantees for renewable technologies and transmission technologies. The goal is to encourage early commercial use of innovative technologies in energy projects and to achieve substantial environmental benefits (reducing greenhouse gas emissions). The DOE can guarantee up to 100 percent of a loan as long as the loan does not exceed 80 percent of project costs, but DOE prefers lower guarantee amounts.
 
 Other Federal Programs
 Other programs applicable to biomass developers worth monitoring and exploring include:
 
 ›Section 9004: RePowering Assistance-to encourage existing biorefineries to replace fossil fuel used during production
 
 ›Section 9005: Bioenergy Program for Advanced Biofuels-provides payments to ag producers to support and ensure expanding production of advanced biofuels
 
 ›Section 9009: Rural Self-Sufficiency Initiative-provides funding to enable rural communities to increase energy self-sufficiency (uncertain program timing/funding)
 
 ›Section 9011: Biomass Crop Assistance Program-provides support to establish and produce crops for conversion to bioenergy and to help with collection, harvest and storage 
 
 ›Section 9012: Forest Biomass for Energy-to support research and development to facilitate use of forest biomass for energy-related applications
 
 Project Equity Financing
 In conjunction with the senior debt, which can range from 50 percent to 70 percent of the project cost, depending on the lender and the guarantees, if any, sufficient equity must be raised the options for equity today are local investors, strategic partners, equity funds (not very likely) and tax equity. The ability for biomass-to-electricity companies to claim investment tax credits, production tax credits, bonus depreciation and accelerated depreciation opens up the door for tax equity investors. The tax equity market has shrunk significantly in the past few years due to the economic environment. As a result of this situation, a new program under ARRA has made it possible to get a grant from the federal government in lieu of the 30 percent investment tax credit for certain biomass projects. These grants are issued within 60 days of project completion. The grant details have not yet been released but are expected soon. With this grant, local equity and a loan guarantee, more project developers will be able to successfully fund their biomass projects. 
 
 Another tax driven option is New Market Tax Credits. This federal program has been in existence for several years and funding was increased this year. It is difficult to meet the requirements but is worth the effort as the capital is treated as subordinated debt or equity. The first hurdle is that the project must be in a qualifying census tract that is distressed and being in a rural area is a positive. The census tract must be low income or with high net migration of population. Economic development and job creation are needed to qualify. 
 
 The investor invests 20 percent to 25 percent of the project cost and gets tax credits against federal taxes (39 percent) over seven years instead of getting his capital returned 
 from the project. The interest rates and fees on new market capital are 2 percent to 4 percent per year with no amortization. The structure is complicated and it is difficult to find lenders that can work within the structure. The project size that works best is in the $10 million to $40 million total cost range.
 
 Conclusion
 In today's capital markets, there is scarce private capital beyond the developer's own seed capital, making it a difficult environment in which to start and fund a new project. That being said, the emphasis on renewable energy in this country has never been greater and biomass is a high priority. Government is leading the way in encouraging new biomass projects, and grant and loan programs are being announced on a continuous basis. There are many requirements and procedures to navigate, and it can take a long time but is worth the effort if your project qualifies. The right business plan, the right partners and a realistic capital structure significantly improve the odds for success.
 
 Sue Wyka is a partner at Ascendant Partners Inc. and Ascendant Financial Partners LLC. Reach her at <a href="mailto:swyka@ascendantfp.com">swyka@ascendantfp.com</a> or (303) 221-4700.

Government grants and loan guarantees could be used to help fund biomass projects until the economy improves.

Biomass Project Financing Solutions in Today's Difficult Capital Markets

The World Coal-to-Liquids (CTL) 2009 Conference held in Washington, D.C., in March truly lived up to its name, as representatives from six continents were in attendance. Several industry heavyweights presented updates on the latest in research and commercial development. To name a few, Shenhua Group, one of China's largest coal producers, presented information on the recent start-up of the world's first commercial-scale direct coal-to-liquid fuel plant in China. The plant will eventually be capable of producing 2,800 tons of synthetic fuels a day. ExxonMobil discussed its methanol-to-gasoline (MTG) technology that will be used in an indirect coal-to-liquids plant, which is slated to begin operation in China later this year. 
 
 A common theme mentioned by nearly all of the presenters was the potential impact that coal can have on the environment. Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions have become a social and political hot-button issue, and the media and various environmental groups have painted coal in a less than favorable light. This was especially apparent at the conference as it was interrupted for nearly half an hour by environmental activists, who were protesting the continued use and development of coal as a source of energy and fuel. 
 
 These negative views are not entirely unsubstantiated, as historical CTL processes produced more than twice the amount of CO2 when compared with petroleum-derived fuel processes. 
 
 A partial solution to mitigate the potential environmental impacts of coal is carbon dioxide capture and storage. While it can be technically feasible to capture nearly all of the CO2 generated by a CTL process, it may be most economical or practical to capture some portion of the CO2. The feasibility and economics of CO2 sequestration are highly site-specific as well. 
 
 Lignocellulosic biomass-to-liquids (BTL) plants suffer from their own set of problems, not the least of which is the cost of transporting enough biomass to allow plants to take advantage of economies of scale. Cogasification of coal with biomass may be the final piece of the puzzle to make BTL and CTL commercialization environmentally and politically palatable. A study by the U.S. DOE National Energy Technology Laboratory determined that as little as 8 percent based on weight of biomass cogasified with coal-combined with carbon dioxide capture and storage-can significantly reduce the CO2 emissions. 
 
 A research report prepared by the Energy & Environmental Research Center in 2007 analyzed the potential synergies that can be found with the creation of domestic energy parks. 
 
 The pulp and paper industry, which already processes coal and biomass, provide ideal sites for the integration of fuel, heat and electricity production. 
 
 CTL fuel technology is rapidly being commercialized, particularly in China. If the social and political stigma currently placed on coal can be removed, perhaps CTL will be used to improve energy security in the United States and other nations as well. Biomass, along with carbon dioxide sequestration, may prove to be the key that unlocks the door. 
 
 Tony Snyder is a research engineer at the EERC. He can be reached at <a href="mailto:tsnyder@undeerc.org">tsnyder@undeerc.org</a> or (701) 777-6123.

1133-1286340745.jpg

Role of Biomass in Coal-to-Liquids

Posted May 20, 2009, at 7:40 a.m. CST
 
 Energy crop company Ceres Inc. announced today that switchgrass can produce substantially more biomass than previously reported and that average yields often used by academics and policymakers to forecast bioenergy economics and environmental benefits may, in fact, be far too conservative. 
 
 The company reported that yield results from its nationwide network of field trials showed that average biomass yields among switchgrass seed varieties tested last season were as much as 50 percent more than the government's projected yields for 2022. Proprietary varieties sold under the company's Blade Energy Crops brand were consistently the highest yielding varieties across multiple trial locations, with average yields reaching nearly 10 tons. 
 
 The highest yield was reported in California, where a Ceres experimental variety produced 19 tons per acre. Ceres switchgrass product manager Cory Christensen, Ph.D., said that "this result demonstrates the genetic potential of switchgrass grown under favorable conditions." He predicted that "through trait development, better genetics and improved crop management practices, we can continue to increase average yields for many years to come."
 
 Christensen noted that higher yields per acre have a significant impact on farm and conversion economics, and can dramatically reduce harvest and delivery costs per ton, collectively the single largest expense in providing raw materials to bioenergy facilities. Similar benefits would be seen in calculating the greenhouse gas savings of displacing petroleum with biofuels made from dedicated energy crops. 
 
 Based on the Ceres results, policymakers will likely need to re-think their assumptions regarding energy crop production. A number of studies assume yields as low as 2 to 4 tons per acre for switchgrass, and rather than incorporating yield increases from breeding, many of these studies hold yields virtually flat into the future. More recently, a highly regarded biofuel study co-authored by Sandia National Labs used a conservative 6 tons of biomass per acre for energy grasses--similar to estimates by the U.S. EPA. 
 
 Ceres Chief Executive Richard Hamilton says that Ceres needs additional data before formally proposing new benchmarks, but said the "writing was on the wall." Adding, "these results are not surprising when you look at the impact that utilizing modern biology has had on food crop yields, like corn, which has seen a five-fold increase since the first hybrids were introduced."
 
 Even using the government's conservative projections, switchgrass sequesters more carbon than any other raw material evaluated by EPA, which released its official analysis on advanced biofuels earlier this month. 
 
 "Energy crops like switchgrass are the only scalable, carbon-negative sources for transportation fuels in the EPA analysis," Hamilton said, meaning that more carbon is sequestered from the atmosphere than is released in the life cycle of producing and burning the fuel. "That's a benefit that electric cars, hydrogen and other renewables do not provide," he said.
 
 "With dedicated energy crops, increasing average on-farm yields will mean even greater gains in reducing greenhouse gases, as well as improved profitability for farmers and bioenergy companies. Perennial grasses are good and clearly can be made even better using well-proven technologies at hand today," Hamilton said. 
 
 According to Ceres, the switchgrass data were collected from small-plot, replicated trials at locations across the mid and southern latitudes of the United States on both dry and irrigated land in 2008. Like other crops, biomass yields can vary among specific locations and year-to-year. 
 
 SOURCE CERES INC.

Ceres yield results: Energy crop benefits are greatly underestimated

Posted May 20, 2009, at 8:35 a.m. CST 
 
 House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson, D-Minn., and Ranking Member Frank Lucas, R-Okla., along with a bipartisan group of 42 members of Congress recently introduced legislation that seeks to alter certain provisions of the Renewable Fuel Standard. 
 
 The legislation, titled the Renewable Fuel Standard Improvement Act (H.R. 2409), would eliminate the requirement that the U.S. EPA consider indirect land use when calculating the greenhouse gas emissions associated with advanced biofuels. It also strikes the restrictive definition of renewable biomass that was included in the Energy Independence & Security Act of 2007, and replaces it with the definition included in the 2008 Farm Bill. According to the House Agriculture Committee, the Farm Bill definition of renewable biomass was developed in consultation with appropriate federal agencies and other congressional committees and was discussed and debated in a transparent manner, unlike the EISA definition, which was never openly discussed or debated in Congress. 
 
 "The unreasonable restrictions placed on the biofuels industry in the 2007 Energy Bill were never debated by Congress, and I've spent the past two years trying to undo the damage that we're seeing now that EPA has published the proposed regulations that will make it impossible to meet the RFS," Peterson said. "In order to ensure that a clean, homegrown biofuels industry will succeed in the United States, we need to have federal energy policies are flexible, practical and innovative." 
 
 "Mr. Peterson's bill is a legislative response to poorly crafted EPA regulation," Lucas said. "The most important provision in the bill is the expansion of the acreage eligible to produce biomass feedstock. This will ease pressure on the current corn production system and it will open the way for more rapid development of next generation ethanol." 
 
 Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis recently released a statement in support of the bill. "I commend Chairman Peterson, ranking member Lucas and the bipartisan coalition of 42 members for their far-reaching vision of an America powered by homegrown renewable fuels," Buis said. "Growth Energy strongly believes in the promise of ethanol and other renewable fuels to reduce our nation's dependence on foreign oil." Buis also said that last-minute provisions inserted into EISA threaten to derail the progress made by the biofuels industry. "The law requires EPA to measure indirect land-use changes in other countries, where we have no control over what they produce or the amount they produce on their farms," he continued. "To proceed with this flawed concept would have a devastating impact on our nation's move to produce home-grown, green fuel right here in America." 
 
 The Renewable Fuel Standard Improvement Act was introduced May 14, and referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. 
 
 SOURCE: ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE

Bill would exclude indirect land-use from RFS2 

Posted May 20, 2009, at 8:46 a.m. CST
 
 The Energy & Environmental Research Center at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks announced today it has begun a groundbreaking demonstration of a revolutionary clean energy system that converts used railroad ties into heat and power. The demonstration unit is located inside the EERC's National Center for Hydrogen Technology demonstration facility.
 
 The EERC is working with Aboriginal Cogeneration Corporation, based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, to convert biomass to energy in environmentally friendly ways. The company is working to install two 1-megawatt commercial clean power systems at its demonstration site northeast of Vancouver at Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada.
 
 "This is a real breakthrough in technology," said Nikhil Patel, project manager and research scientist at the EERC. "Railroad ties treated with creosote are some of the most difficult biomass feedstocks to process safely because they contain significant amounts of coal tar. The U.S. EPA has placed severe restrictions on the disposal of the railroad ties because the tar can be harmful to humans," he said.
 
 The EERC, in conjunction with ACC, has reached a major milestone in generating power from waste ties via a proprietary EERC process that meets the stringent environmental regulations of British Columbia. The EERC process also reduces emissions to well below U.S. federal regulations.
 
 "With 25 million used railway ties a year being disposed of in North America, an environmentally challenged material can now be converted into clean green energy," commented Maurice Hladik, CEO of ACC. "Another priority opportunity exists for the 100-plus native communities on diesel-powered generators. Sustainable quantities of locally harvested wood can be utilized to replace the very costly diesel at a substantial savings in energy costs, plus provide meaningful employment opportunities. In addition, the heat generated could be used in a variety of value-added commercial applications."
 
 "The potential applications for this technology are endless," said EERC Director Gerald Groenewold. "This is going to open a lot of doors for the clean utilization of many other renewable fuels and waste products for the production of heat and power throughout the world."
 
 The EERC's power system, which has been under construction for about two months, can process about 35 to 40 pounds of fuel an hour. The railroad ties are chipped before being fed into the system. The system operates at a much lower pressure and flow rate compared to other systems of this type, making it much easier to operate and integrate with other commercially available technologies for generating heat and power. 
 
 SOURCE: EERC

EERC demonstrates cutting-edge technology to produce clean energy from used railroad ties

Posted May 20, 2009, at 9:51 a.m. CST
 
 The Biotechnology Industry Organization recently hosted a briefing on the progress companies are making in bringing advanced biofuels to the marketplace, and indicated it is confident that the advanced biofuel requirements of the Renewable Fuel Standard can be met. 
 
 The current cellulosic biofuel mandate is set at 1 billion gallons by 2013, with additional annual increases to 16 billion gallons in 2022. The advanced biofuel requirement also includes 1 billion gallons of biomass-based diesel by 2012.
 
 Speakers at the briefing included DuPont Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol LLC Vice President of Commercial and Public Affairs Jack Huttner; Gevo Inc. CEO Patrick Gruber; and Novozymes North America President Lars Hansen. 
 
 "The recent analysis by the Environmental Protection Agency shows that biofuels produced with biotech tools will dramatically reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions from transportation-more than 100 percent compared to gasoline, in some cases," said Brent Erickson, executive vice president of BIO's Industrial and Environmental Section. "In addition to enabling production of cellulosic biofuels, biotechnology can continue to help biofuel producers reduce carbon emissions by increasing yields of fuel per ton of raw material and decreasing energy use in production of biofuels. Biotechnology can also help farmers increase yields per acre and reduce petroleum inputs in agriculture," he said. 
 Gruber said Gevo's technology, which is based on the fermentation of biomass into isobutanol, should be commercial by 2011. The company is currently constructing a 1 MMgy demonstration plant that is slated for start-up in the third quarter of 2009. "We can go into a different infrastructure than ethanol," Gruber said. "We can make 90 percent renewable gasoline-not hypothetical gasoline, exactly gasoline. Likewise, isobutanol contains the same hydrocarbon components that go into jet fuel and diesel fuel." 
 
 Dupont Danisco's cellulosic ethanol demonstration plant in Vonore, Tenn., should be operational in December 2009, according to Huttner. "Our objective is to build a couple of demonstration plants, and then license our technology to biorefinery companies throughout North America and the world," he said. "There are three main messages we would like to give-one is that from our point of view, [cellulosic ethanol] technology is ready for commercialization. This is no longer a technology that is five years from being commercially viable."
 
 Huttner said the real challenge involved isn't technology integration; rather it's the supply-chain development. "The requirement of biorefineries for biomass is quite significant, in organizing the farmer/producers to produce the kinds of volumes we're going to need for billions of gallons. It's a big challenge not only for us, but the whole industry." 
 
 Huttner said developers are approaching parity with first-generation ethanol in terms of cost. "Our objective is to be price-parity with gasoline, at about $80 per barrel," he added.

BIO: RFS advanced biofuel requirement can be met

As the Obama Administration and Congress consider approaches to promote clean energy and reduce greenhouse gases (GHG) in the electricity sector, a coalition of advocacy groups released a report in late April countering industry claims that carbon cap-and-trade legislation will be too costly for consumers. The report suggested energy efficiency improvements and renewable energy standards will make cap-and-trade legislation affordable, create 300,000 jobs by 2025 and save consumers more than $200 billion. 
 
 "This report shows that the doomsday predictions utility companies are making don't take into account the consumer benefits of this bill," said Rob Kelter, senior attorney at the Environmental Law and Policy Center. "This legislation will be good for the economy and good for the environment." The Environmental Law and Policy Center was joined by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, the Energy Future Coalitions Environment NorthEast, Natural Resources Defense Council and the Union of Concerned Scientists in releasing the analysis titled, "A Comprehensive Approach to Setting Clean Energy Standards for the Electricity Sector."
 
 The report supports proposals contained in the Waxman-Markey (Reps. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., and Edward Markey, D-Mass.) draft of the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 before Congress, which combines energy and climate legislation in one bill taking a three-pillar approach. An Energy Efficiency Resources Standard would reduce electricity usage by at least 15 percent and natural gas usage by at least 10 percent by 2020. A renewable electricity standard would increase renewable energy production to at least 20 percent by 2020. And a global warming cap would cut GHG emissions by at least 35 percent below current levels by 2020 and by at least 80 percent by 2050.
 
 Opponents say the EERS and RES are overly ambitious and would increase costs to utility companies trying to meet emission reduction targets. The report argues that eliminating the standards or combining them in order to weaken both would be a mistake for the following reasons:
 	
 ›Weakening or eliminating the EERS or RES results in fewer new jobs, lower utility savings for consumers and businesses, and fewer opportunities for new economic development-at a time when jobs and economic growth are top national priorities. 
 	
 ›Energy efficiency and renewable energy investments can help lower the cost of electricity under cap-and-trade legislation, saving consumers money. Energy efficiency reduces energy demand, providing utility bill savings and making the RES target easier to meet while renewable energy sources provide energy without the carbon dioxide emissions associated with traditional generation sources. Energy efficiency and renewable energy sources reduce the need for expensive new power plants, which in turn reduces the cost of generating power and cuts GHG emissions. 
 	
 ›An American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy analysis shows that electricity prices under cap-and-trade legislation will be 15 percent less if an EERS and RES are in place. In other words, investing in energy efficiency and renewable energy will help minimize the cost of complying with climate legislation.

ACEEE analyzed the impact of proposed cap-and-trade polices on electrical rates when applied alone and in conjunction with renewable electricity standards. They found that adding efficiency standards to the mix reduces the cost to the consumer the mo

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Energy efficiency savings offset cap-and-trade costs

OriginOil Inc. is making progress toward reducing the cost of harvesting algae and extracting the oil in a rapid, one-step process. In addition to integrating this process into its own algae production system, OriginOil plans to quickly commercialize the patent-pending process for use by others in the algae industry.
 
 While a number of developers have been working on various systems to efficiently grow algae, a major hurdle for the industry has been efficiently harvesting the algae and extracting the oil. Not only does algae production require large volumes of water, but algae share the same specific gravity as water, hindering easy separation. "The energy cost of extracting algae is 10 times the energy cost of extracting soybean oil," said OriginOil CEO Riggs Eckelberry. 
 
 In the past several months, OriginOil has combined its ultrasound-based Quantum Fracturing process with pH modification and electromagnetism. "In a single step you can extract the oil and get the biomass and oil to separate spontaneously shortly afterward," he explained. The process releases the oil to rise to the top for skimming, while the remaining biomass settles to the bottom. In less than an hour, the oil, water and biomass separate by gravity alone. No chemicals or heavy machinery are used, and no initial dewatering is required.
 
 OriginOil is already in talks with potential partners to quickly commercialize the technology, Eckelberry added. The company has completed a series of bench prototype testing and continues to experiment with adjusting the various factors to optimize the process. OriginOil intends to distribute the technology for algae harvest and oil extraction separately, as it continues to work with its own algae production system.
 
 In February, OriginOil announced it had signed a cooperative research and development agreement with the U.S. DOE's Idaho National Laboratory. In the first phase, INL will develop a model to evaluate algae systems' mass and energy balance. In the second phase, INL will work with OriginOil's prototype technology to validate and further develop the company's algae technology.
 
 With breakthroughs being announced weekly by the multiple companies developing algae technology, Eckelberry admits healthy skepticism is in order. "It's a dot-com environment right now, and it's going to take a while for it all to sort out," he said. He advised observers to follow the announcements, and "see how it settles out." Eckelberry is an advocate of sharing information and progress, while respecting the need to protect proprietary information. 
 
 For more information, visit the company's Web site at <a href="http://www.originoil.com">www.originoil.com</a>.

OriginOil has begun the commercialization process for its new single-step technology to economically harvest and separate oil from algae./PHOTO: ORIGINOIL

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OriginOil achieves rapid algae oil extraction

I would like to thank everyone for making the International Biomass Conference & Expo in Portland, Ore., a success. I have to say, people in the biomass industry are a patient bunch. As some of you may know, I spent a good deal of my time checking people in at the registration desk. I had just learned how to use the computer program and was pretty tentative at first, but nobody seemed to mind. In fact, my ineptness gave me a chance to visit with many of you. 
 
 Oregon was the perfect venue for the conference as the state is so supportive of biomass projects. According to Oregon Department of Energy Director Michael Grainey, the state has an energy loan program to help pay for constructing renewable energy facilities and it has two tax credits to encourage the use of biomass. Oregon also has a renewable fuel standard for ethanol, and legislation is pending to establish one for biodiesel. The state also has a renewable portfolio standard that requires the largest utilities to provide 25 percent of their retail sales of electricity from renewable sources in 2025. 
 
 If you didn't make it to the biomass conference, you can read about it in this magazine. Biomass Magazine Associate Editor Anna Austin attended the conference and wrote a feature about it called "Biomass in the City of Roses," which starts on page 28.
 
 The only thing that would have made the conference better was if during the conference the U.S. DOE would have announced that it was investing $786.5 million to produce renewable fuels. It would have been even better if Energy Secretary Steven Chu would have been at the conference to make the announcement. Oh well, there's always next year.
 
 As much as I like to complain about the federal government, I was impressed with the funding announcement, and President Barack Obama's creation of the Biofuels Interagency Working Group composed of the DOE, USDA and U.S. EPA. It makes perfect sense for these three agencies to work together as the U.S. looks to increase its use of renewable energy. These three agencies are not only tasked with accelerating the production of biofuels but also with increasing the use of biofuels, and, at the same time, improving the environmental sustainability of biofuels feedstock production. 
 
 The president also directed Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to expedite and increase production of and investment in biofuels. Some of the ways the secretary will do this are by refinancing existing investments in renewable fuels, making renewable energy financing opportunities in the Farm Bill available within 30 days, providing loan guarantees for the development, construction and retrofitting of biorefineries, and providing grants to build demonstration-scale biorefineries. 
 
 Do you suppose the president read my column last month where I criticized lawmakers for investing too much of our hard-earned tax money into losing ventures and urged them to start putting money into viable industries? Probably not, but a gal can dream. 
 
 Rona Johnson
 Editor
 <a href="mailto:rjohnson@bbiinternational.com">rjohnson@bbiinternational.com</a>

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All Eyes are on the Biomass Industry

All of the attention focused on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act may have caused many folks to overlook other energy/fuel-centric federal "stimulus" programs. As of this writing, Title IX of the Farm Bill offers a number of good programs currently waiting in the shadows of the ARRA. 
 
 The 2008 Farm Bill provides more programs and money than were available last year. Thus, a review of all of the programs under the bill is warranted, although space considerations allow for only a sampling of the programs to be presented here. 
 
 Section 9004: Repowering Assistance Program-Section 9004 authorizes payments to encourage biorefineries in existence when the Farm Bill was passed to replace fossil fuels used for operational power with biomass power. Payments would be made for installation of new biomass systems. 
 
 Section 9005: Bioenergy Program for Advanced Biofuels-Section 9005 provides for payments to be made to eligible agricultural producers to support and ensure an expanding production of "advanced biofuels." Advanced biofuels under the bill are essentially those fuels derived from renewable biomass other than corn-kernel starch and include, among others, ethanol from waste materials. Further, advanced biofuels must have life-cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions at least 50 percent less than baseline (2005) life-cycle GHG emissions for gasoline or diesel as specified by the Energy Independence & Security Act of 2007. 
 
 Section 9007: Rural Energy for America Program-Section 9007 is designed to promote energy efficiency and renewable energy development for agricultural producers and rural small businesses and provides grants and loan guarantees for energy audits, feasibility studies and project development of renewable energy systems/energy efficiency improvements. Grants in certain instances, however, may not exceed 25 percent of cost. Loan guarantees are capped at $25 million per loan, and any combination of grant and loan guarantees may not exceed 75 percent of cost.	
 
 Section 9008: Biomass Research and Development Initiative-Section 9008 provides competitive grants, contracts and financial assistance to eligible entities to carry out research on and development and demonstration of biofuels and biobased products, and the methods, practices and technologies for their production. 
 
 Section 9011: Biomass Crop Assistance-Section 9011 provides support to establish and produce crops for conversion to bioenergy, and to help agricultural and forest landowners with the collection, harvest, storage and transportation of eligible material for use in a biomass conversion facility. 
 
 Section 9012: Forest Biomass for Energy-Section 9012 appropriates $15 million annually for fiscal year 2009-'12 for the Forest Service to administer a competitive and comprehensive research and development program to use forest biomass for energy. The Forest Service, other federal agencies, state and local governments, Indian tribes, land-grant colleges and universities, and private entities are eligible to compete for such program funds. The priority research projects include: developing technology and techniques to use low-value forest biomass for energy production; developing processes to integrate energy production from forest biomass into biorefineries; developing new transportation fuels from forest biomass; and improving growth and yield of trees intended for renewable energy.
 
 John Eustermann is a partner with Stoel Rives LLP. Reach him at <a href="mailto:jmeustermann@stoel.com">jmeustermann@stoel.com</a> or (208) 387-4218.

John Eustermann, partner, Stoel Rives LLP

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Don't Overlook Biomass Stimulus in Farm Bill

The Department of Defense has awarded $1.9 million in funding to a biofuel research team led by chemical engineer George Huber at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst so he and colleagues can turn wood and corn waste into fuel precursors. The DoD's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has granted Huber and colleagues funding to investigate new catalysts to enable low-cost pathways for the conversion of lignocellulosic biomass (derived from the cells and woody fibers of plants and trees) into a liquid composition that can be easily refined to a fuel such as JP-8. Huber and his team will exploit new chemistries to develop an end-to-end process that starts with biomass as the input and ends with JP-8 range alkanes and aromatics, which are both hydrocarbons and are the essential ingredients in military fuel.

UMass Amherst receives DARPA award

Milwaukee-based law firm Michael Best & Friedrich LLP is responding to the growing need for more specialized focus in the area of climate change by assembling a multidisciplinary team of attorneys to assist clients in identifying the opportunities, addressing the uncertainties and understanding the challenges that climate change presents to their businesses. 
 
 The Michael Best Climate Change Group has followed the developments of international, federal, regional and state greenhouse gas (GHG) reporting and reduction programs and is offering services in the areas of baseline GHG monitoring and reporting, carbon markets, transactions, project development, including debt and equity financing, compliance with the emerging GHG reduction proposals and strategic planning. "Our team members combine diverse backgrounds from the worlds of renewable and fossil fuel energies, business, agriculture, finance and the environment to provide clients in-depth knowledge of the impacts of climate change," said Ray Krueger, co-founder of the Climate Change Group.

Michael Best forms climate change group

Posted May 27, 2009, at 9:01 a.m. CST
 
 Waste collection, transfer and recycling company Waste Management Inc. has recently unveiled plans for two waste-to-energy initiatives, which will be added to its current portfolio of more than 100 landfill gas projects across North America.
 
 Along with gasification system developer InEnTec LLC, Waste Management has formed a new company, S4 Energy Solutions LLC, with intent to develop, operate and market municipal solid waste-to-fuel/electricity plants.
 
 Initially, the joint venture will focus on processing medical and segregated commercial and industrial waste streams. The Plasma Enhanced Melter system, developed by InEnTec, involves the extreme heating of waste materials-between 10,000 and 20,000 degrees Fahrenheit- using plasma gas. The intense heat rearranges the molecular structure of the gas into a synthesis gas, which may be converted to ethanol, diesel, hydrogen, methanol or as a substitute for natural gas to generate electricity.
 
 Waste Management Director of Communications Wes Muir told Biomass Magazine the company hopes to announce a pilot facility within the year, if not sooner. The locale is still to be determined, he said, as well as a testing timeline. 
 
 In addition to the partnership with InEnTec, Waste Management announced it had developed a plan with officials of Will County, Ill., to build a landfill gas-to-energy plant at the Prairie View Recycling and Disposal Facility outside of Wilmington in northeast Illinois. 
 
 The company estimated the facility, which could be operational by the end of 2010, will produce 2.4 to 3.2 megawatts of power from three or four reciprocating engines, enough electricity to power more than 2,000 homes. The Prairie View landfill already has a gas recovery system constructed by Waste Management, which burns recovered gas in a flare. 
 
 Will County anticipates sinking at least $1 million into the project, and said it intends to apply for federal economic stimulus funds for renewable energy projects to help with associated costs.

Waste Management partners for biomass projects

MAC Equipment is marking a major milestone by celebrating its 40th anniversary. In 1969, Gary and Virginia McDaniel established MAC Equipment in Sabetha, Kan. The company pioneered the development of dust collection and clean air systems based on the Clean Air Act of 1970. For four decades, MAC has demonstrated the ability to respond and react to changes in the industry. Gary McDaniel retired in 1998 and sold the business to George K. Baum and Co., allowing for continued growth in both dust collection and pneumatic conveying during the next decade. This dramatic growth in such a short span of time caught the attention of Clyde Process Solutions PLC, which acquired MAC in 2007. The acquisition created a global presence for both MAC and Clyde technologies that continues today. MAC Equipment employs more than 350 people in North America.

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MAC celebrates 40th anniversary

River Consulting was ranked as one of the Top 500 Design Firms in the country by Engineering News-Record for the second consecutive year. Published annually, the ENR Top 500 recognizes top-performing architectural and engineering firms. River took the 440th spot in the Engineering News-Record April 20, 2009 issue. The ranking is based on 2008 revenue, and is a 7 percent increase from last year's 475. "This places us in the top 0.5 percent of the more than 90,000 design firms nationwide," said Gregory DiFrank, PE, president of River Consulting, citing the number of design firms based upon the most recent economic census. River Consulting delivers multidiscipline engineering and project management solutions for major capital projects and facility and process expansions. River's experience spans 28 years and 57 countries with offices in Columbus, Ohio, New Orleans, Pittsburgh, Houston and Salt Lake City.

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River Consulting recognized as Top 500 Design Firm

Smethport, Pa., is a little town with a history of biomass use, and abuse. The forest around the small town in the Alleghany Mountains of northcentral Pennsylvania was first logged to supply tall, white pine poles for the masts of sailing ships when they were the primary mode of world commerce. Hemlock bark was harvested to supply tannic acid to the hide tanning industry. In the next industrial development, a dam was built in 1825 to power the sawmills that turned the hardwood forest into lumber for furniture and construction. In the mid-1800s, the chemical wood industry moved in to clear-cut the remaining forests to manufacture chemicals such as acetate, acetone and wood alcohol, and by the 1930s, the hills were bare. 
 
 "That will never happen again," says Tim Pierson, forestry specialist for the Pennsylvania State Cooperative Extension Service in McKean County, who works in Smethport. The forest grew back after its abuse, this time with stands of mixed hardwoods, including high-quality black cherry. Where the cherry covered less than 1 percent of the forest before, many areas now have stands of 25 percent black cherry. "McKean is the black cherry capital of the world," Pierson says. Loggers select the best of the cherry trees for the furniture business, along with maple, oak and white ash. "We have the highest quality hardwoods, and nature did it," Pierson says. Maintaining that quality through sustainable forestry practices is his goal as the community moves forward with a plan to harvest low-grade woody biomass for heat and power.
 
 Pierson was part of a group of foresters who visited Austria a year ago to see for themselves how one nation has managed its forests for multiple uses for hundreds of years. A heavily-forested country about two-thirds the size of Pennsylvania, Austria has 1,560 district heating plants using woody biomass-about 20 of those are combined-heat-and-power (CHP) systems. Soon 50 percent of Austria's energy will come from renewable resources, with 15 percent to 20 percent from wood. "The forester is one of the most respected persons in the community," Pierson says. "And their forests didn't look like they were overused, even though they've been used for thousands of years."
 
 Smethport Mayor Ross Porter remembers when Pierson was touring Austria. "He called me three times," he says. "He was aware of our need to replace our water system in Smethport-some of our pipes are still wooden. The day he returned he was in our kitchen at 6:15 in the morning. That was the beginning." The two became co-chairmen of the Smethport Woody Biomass Leadership Team and held a series of community meetings to gain widespread support for the project. "[Using the forest] is part of our history, this is part of our tradition, and we'll be doing it a lot smarter than it was done in the wood chemical industry," Porter says.
 
 Duplicating the Austrian Model
 Smethport is modeling its woody biomass project on one the foresters visited in the rural town of Gussing, Austria, where the biomass CHP system covers a plot of land about the size of a football field and provides the town's 4,000 residents with electricity and heat in a system that burns wood chips at 93 percent efficiency. The research and development center and business incubator draws about 1,000 people a week to tour the renewable energy facilities. The renewable energy center has revitalized the local economy, which was suffering from job losses and the loss of many of its young people.
 
 Smethport is hoping to duplicate Gussing's experience. McKean County is home to the Allegheny National Forest, Pennsylvania's only national forest. Seventy-eight percent of the county is forest, which includes a considerable amount of private forests. The woody biomass project would harvest undesirable trees for heat and power, while enhancing the quality of the trees that remain. Pierson is working with a group of foresters and local loggers to develop criteria for sustainable harvest. "We want to demonstrate how to harvest woody biomass sustainably to benefit the ecosystem and the forest industry," Pierson says.
 
 Smethport's leaders hope to reinvent the community. "Biomass is local, so you keep your energy dollars local," Porter says. "I like to call it localization rather than globalization, localization of energy dollars." 
 
 The borough of Smethport operates its own electric utility, paying more than $1 million a year for wholesale electricity. "That doesn't include the heating bills everyone pays," Porter adds. 
 
 Smethport proposes to install a CHP system, to generate electricity and supply heat for the entire community, installing the pipes for a district heating system at the same time as replacing its aging water system. The estimated cost for the water system alone is $20 million, of which the largest expense would be digging in the water lines. Porter says a preliminary figure for the combined district heating and water project is $50 million, even with the considerable savings from doing only one excavation for the combined project. As the county seat of McKean County, there are opportunities to partner with county, state, federal and borough governments for the centralized heating system. The proposal also includes building a research and outreach center and a business incubator. While there are college campuses and a handful of cities with district heating, it is believed that Smethport would be the first community of its size in the nation with such a system. The group is hoping the innovative nature and demonstration value of the project will attract funding.
 
 The project has already attracted grants totaling $150,000 to help with the planning. In March, Smethport's woody biomass team sent letters to 65 engineering firms soliciting those interested in developing the project for the community of 1,700 residents and 830 homes. "The response knocked our socks off," Porter says. "We received 13 really strong statements of qualifications. We had top engineering firms from Denmark, Austria, Sweden, Germany, some partnering with U.S. firms, as well as strong U.S. firms apply." At press time, interviews were being scheduled to pick the winning candidate.
 
 Growing Regional Interest
 Smethport is one of several communities in the Northeast studying woody biomass-fired CHP systems, according to Lew McCreery, woody biomass coordinator for the U.S. Forest Service in the Northeast. "To some extent this drop in oil prices has slowed the interest," but as soon as the economy turns around those oil prices will go up again, he says. 
 
 Compared with the recent volatility in oil prices, the price of wood has been much more stable over the past 20 years, he points out. However, for McCreery, the efficient utilization of renewable energy resources, not cost, is the most important factor. Capturing and utilizing the waste heat from electrical generation increases the efficiency of the system from a mere 30 percent when waste heat is exhausted to nearly 90 percent. McCreery adds that in the Austrian tour, he learned that any combustion system installed there, whether it's a big power plant or small trash incinerator, is required to have a market to utilize the heat. 
 
 McCreery would like to see the concept deployed in the U.S., with multiple distributed power systems matching the available renewable resource with residential or commercial customers able to use the heat in CHP systems. Part of the groundwork is in place, he says. A Community Wood Energy Program is authorized as a U.S. Forest Service program in the energy title of the Farm Bill, although the program remains unfunded. "If there were money in CWEP, we would be trying to support projects where communities take a look at their wood resources and determine what could be used locally for a CHP project, whether to heat a few buildings or the whole community," McCreery says. "Other USDA programs can help fund building the projects." 
 
 While funding CWEP could boost woody biomass utilization efforts, an even larger policy issue needs examination. Because of the experience in communities such as Smethport that saw its forests exploited and abused in the past, there is a reluctance to allow the harvesting of woody biomass from national forests for bioenergy. Language in the 2007 Energy Independence & Security Act does not qualify woody biomass from national forests and natural private forests as feedstocks for advanced biofuels in the renewable fuel standard (RFS). Similarly, language in the renewable electricity standard (RES) currently being discussed in the U.S. Congress would not qualify the use of woody biomass from national forests or privately held natural forests. Missing from the discussions on the RFS or RES, McCreery says, is the utilization of heat to maximize the efficiency of the renewable resource. 
 
 After touring large and small woody biomass CHP systems in Austria and seeing the impact of keeping energy dollars local while sustainably managing the forests, McCreery says he's a convert. "We can [harvest forests for bioenergy] and have a real positive impact, if we use the efficiency concept and share the energy." 
 
 Susanne Retka Schill is the assistant editor of Biomass Magazine. Reach her at <a href="mailto:sretkaschill@bbiinternational.com">sretkaschill@bbiinternational.com</a> or (701) 738-4922.

The woody-biomass CHP system in Gussing, Austria, powers and heats the community of 4,000. The rural community's research and development center and business incubator attracts tourists and researchers./PHOTO: Smethport Woody Biomass Leadership Team

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Hamlin Lake Park is located in the center of Smethport and surrounded on all sides by hardwood forested mountains. Hamlin Lake was constructed in 1824 as a mill pond to float logs./PHOTO: Ross Porter, Mayor of Smethport

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A small Pennsylvania community has long built its economy around the forest. Looking ahead, it wants to be the first small town in the U.S. with a woody biomass-fired combined-heat-and-power district heating system.

Reinventing Smethport's Forest Legacy

Green Plains Renewable Energy Inc. and BioProcessAlgae LLC have executed a grant award agreement with the Iowa Office of Energy Independence for a $2.1 million research and development grant from the Iowa Power Fund to build an algae pilot project at Green Plains' ethanol plant in Shenandoah, Iowa. The Iowa Power Fund grant provides matching funds to install a series of photobioreactor units at Green Plains' Shenandoah ethanol plant. Water, heat and carbon dioxide will be recycled from the ethanol manufacturing process to support continuous algae production. The grant provides funding through the end of the first quarter of calendar year 2010 with installation of the pilot project expected in the third quarter of 2009.

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GPRE, BioprocessAlgae complete funding for algae project

Paul Hastings of Janofsky & Walker LLP, a San Diego-based international law firm, announced that the firm represented Gevo Inc., a biofuels company, in raising a series D round of private investment led by Total, a French oil and gas company, the Virgin Green Fund, Khosla Ventures, Malaysian Life Sciences Capital Fund and Burrill & Co. The transaction closed on April 24, 2009. Gevo is commercializing technology for the cost-effective production of renewable, fungible hydrocarbons such as gasoline blendstocks, renewable jet fuel and renewable diesel blendstocks. In addition to fuels, Gevo's technology enables the production of a wide variety of chemicals and plastics such as polyacrylates and polyethylene terephthalate from renewable sources. Corporate partner Deyan Spiridonov led the Hastings team, which included senior associate Teri O'Brien.

Hastings advises Gevo in series D financing

For the second consecutive year, Novozymes has been recognized for demonstrating real and sustained ethical leadership and is listed as one of the most ethical companies in the world. According to Ethispere Magazine, all of the 2009 World's Most Ethical Companies are standouts in their industries; they use ethical leadership as a purposeful method to drive profits. "Novozymes has proven to be one of the world leaders in upholding high ethical standards, making it a true standout in its industry, especially as unethical business actions and decisions grab headlines each day," said Alex Brigham, executive director of the Ethisphere Institute. The institute reviewed more than 10,000 of the world's leading companies on six continents. The companies are analyzed over a six-month period. Other companies on the list include Dell, T-Mobile, American Express and NIKE. To see the complete list, visit <a href="http://ethispere.com/wme2009">http://ethispere.com/wme2009</a>.

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Novozymes recognized for ethical leadership

Boston-based Ze-gen Inc. announced the addition of Roderick Sidwell. Sidwell will play a key role in the process design and execution of the company's first commercial advanced gasification facility and all subsequent facilities. Sidwell brings more than 18 years of experience to Ze-gen. Prior to joining Ze-gen, he worked as an application engineer for Catalytic Solutions, developing catalyst test rigs and providing field support of SCR installations. In addition, Sidwell has worked as an industry consultant, and has held positions with Ceramatec and Argonne National Laboratory. Sidwell has published a number of articles on his fuel cell research, and holds a patent on the subject.

Ze-gen hires Sidwell as senior process engineer

Posted June 9, 2009 at 9:22 a.m. CST
 
 Five U.K.-based anaerobic digestion projects have been awarded &#8356;10 million ($15.7 million) in grants under the Department for Food, Environment and Rural Affairs (Defra) Anaerobic Digestion Program. 
 
 The program aims to maximize the cost-effective production and environmental benefits of biogas production, maximize the potential of biogas to reduce carbon emissions and the opportunities for injection of methane into the gas grid, and to maximize the potential of biogas to help to reduce the carbon footprint of water treatment infrastructure.
 
 The grants will help with costs of constructing the facilities, and will be administered by the Defra Waste and Resources Action Program. 
 
 Biocycle South Shropshire, operating company for Ludlow GreenFinch's anaerobic digestion facility previously supported under the Defra New Technologies Demonstrator Program, will install a technology designed to increase methane gas yields up to 15 percent by breaking down cell structures prior to digestion. 
 
 Green Wold Energy in East Yorkshire will receive funds for a proposed 50,000 metric ton food waste processing anaerobic digestion facility near Driffield.
 
 Blackmore Vale Dairy will use the funds to utilize a technology designed to deal with high-strength effluents of the dairy processes, providing Blackmore with electricity and heat, some of which will be exported to the grid. Digestate produced at the plant will be further processed into higher quality products by a neighboring compost facility, and the waste water will be discharged to a sewer at lower costs due to reduced pollution loadings.
 
 Stapes Group will install a thermophilic anaerobic digestion facility on its vegetable processing site in Wrangle, Lincolnshire, to process out-of-specification material and trimmings generated by retail contractors. Electricity will be used on site and purchased by a major retailer, and the digestate will be used as a fertilizer.
 
 United Utilities will divert 250 cubic meters per hour of biogas produced at its existing Davyhulme waste water treatment works into a biogas upgrading facility. Part of the biogas will be used to fuel up to 23 converted sludge tankers via a dispensing system, and the remaining biogas will be conditioned and injected into the grid by Nation Grid Gas plc. 
 
 The projects are expected to be completed by the end of March 2011.
 
 To learn more about the Defra Anaerobic Digestion Program, visit <a href="http://www.defra.gov.uk">www.defra.gov.uk</a>.

Defra funds UK anaerobic digestion projects

Posted June 9, 2009, at 3:15 p.m. CST
 
 Solazyme, Inc., a renewable oil production and algal synthetic biology company, announced that it has surpassed $76 million in funding, which includes a $57 million Series C financing round that just closed. Solazyme uses microalgae biotechnology to produce clean and scalable fuels, "green" chemicals, edible oils and health and wellness products. 
 
 Braemar Energy Ventures and Lightspeed Venture Partners led the financing round and were joined by other new investors including VantagePoint Venture Partners. All major existing investors participated in the round, including The Roda Group, Harris and Harris Group, and Solazyme Chairman, Jerry Fiddler. The round also included new strategic investors in key target markets. All funding has been dispersed to Solazyme and will be used to move the company to commercialization. 
 
 "This most recent funding validates the unique value of our oil production platform and adds to our already strong financial position. Solazyme's mission is to answer the increasing global demand for clean and renewable sources of oil. We offer sustainable and scalable technology that provides unique solutions for addressing four of the largest challenges facing our country and our planet: increasing energy demand, heightened energy security needs, energy related environmental degradation, and hunger," said Jonathan Wolfson, CEO of Solazyme. 
 
 "Braemar's mission is to identify and support the most promising alternative energy firms with disruptive technologies that provide meaningful clean energy solutions," said William Lese of Braemer Energy Ventures. "Solazyme's renewable oil and advanced biofuels technology is leading the industry on the path to commercialization and will be cleanly powering our vehicles with renewable fuels that fit within the existing infrastructure." 
 
 "Solazyme has proven itself as a pioneer in the advanced biofuels space, by being the first to do many things including scale-up, production and road testing of a variety of advanced biofuels that can simultaneously meet current U.S. fuel specifications while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by over 80 percent," said Chris Schaepe, a partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners. 
 
 Dan Miller from The Roda Group added, "We are proud to have been an investor in Solazyme since the early seed round, and we are increasingly excited about sizeable opportunities for Solazyme's renewable oils in all markets from fuels, to cosmetics to nutritional oils." 
 
 "Since 2001, VantagePoint Venture Partners has focused its CleanTech efforts on identifying and investing in the leading company in those sectors best addressing the issues of natural resource limitations, climate change and energy independence", said Stephan Dolezalek, managing director and CleanTech Group lead, VantagePoint Venture Partners. "The potential role of algae in achieving these targets has long been clear, but it has taken a while for a definitive category leader to arise. We believe that Solazyme has now emerged as the pre-eminent player in the algal biomaterials and biofuels sector." 
 
 Solazyme's unique renewable oil production process grows algae in the dark in an industrial fermentation process, where the algae are fed nonfood biomass and industrial byproducts including a wide variety of cellulosic materials and low-grade waste glycerol which are converted by the algae into oil. This allows the company to produce oil cleanly and economically in a controlled, large-scale process. Solazyme is currently producing thousands of gallons of oil in commercial-scale facilities and has produced in-specification fuels including renewable diesel, biodiesel and jet fuel. Solazyme's first fuel, Soladiesel, has been successfully road tested as an unblended fuel (100 percent) for thousands of miles in a variety of unmodified vehicles. Additionally, Solazyme's process is the first bridge from nonfood carbohydrates and industrial waste streams to edible and renewable oils. This technology has already been shown to produce high quality oils for a multitude of purposes across a variety of industries. 
 
 SOURCE: SOLAZYME

Solazyme funding surpasses $76 million

Mascoma Corp. announced that it is moving the company's corporate headquarters from Boston into a new research laboratory and office building in Lebanon, N.H. Construction of the new building will be completed in August with occupancy by September 2009. The move will allow research and development engineering and commercial development staff to work together under one roof-providing smooth technology transfer from the lab to operating facilities. It will eliminate travel between offices and decrease the company's carbon footprint. Corporate administrative and operating costs will also be reduced. The corporate office move will involve a reduction of 12 to 15 positions due to elimination of redundant functions and inability of some staff to relocate. However, some new positions will be created in Lebanon, and Rome, N.Y., staffing will be unaffected.

Mascoma moves corporate office to New Hampshire

Fledgling cellulosic ethanol company Biofuels America Inc. is seeking equity investments to advance proposed facilities in Tennessee and Illinois that will use a combination of wood waste and municipal solid waste to produce ethanol, lignin and furfural. CEO Pete Reeves, is confident investors will be enticed to participate in these projects because of the federal policy initiatives to assist in the build-up of this type of facility. The company planned to begin retrofitting a 35-acre Tennessee ethanol facility in early June. The plant has been idle for about eight years. However, Reeves said while the work would begin as scheduled, it could not be completed if the company fails to raise approximately $20 million within the next six months. Operations are expected to begin by 2010, with the initial capacity of 30 MMgy and gradually ramping up to 100 MMgy by 2014.

Future ethanol producers continue to seek funding

Stoel Rives LLP, a U.S. business law firm, announced the publication of a guide to federal clean energy funding opportunities under the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Signed into law by President Obama in February, ARRA contains almost $94 billion in investments and tax incentives for renewable energy, smart grid/transmission, energy efficiency, green vehicles and green job training. Titled "Show Me The Money," the guide reviews the various programs and potential sources of federal funding for clean energy companies and projects. The guide separately addresses funding opportunities under the ARRA for the following energy industry areas: wind, solar, biofuels, biomass, smart grid, transmission, geothermal, marine and hydrokinetic, green building, energy efficiency, advanced battery and fuel cell technology, clean energy equipment manufacturing, green vehicles and clean coal. The firm will also continue to track the frequent updates and funding notices at the federal and state level which may also be of interest. The guide is available on request at www.stoel.com/lawofseries.

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Stoel Rives publishes economic stimulus guide

University of California-San Francisco researchers have published a paper on their work with a bacteria and a yeast that have the potential to become a feedstock flexible process producing an intermediate chemical new to the biomass industry. Christopher Voigt, an associate professor in pharmaceutical chemistry at UCSF, was the principle investigator for the paper, "Synthesis of Methyl Halides from Biomass Using Engineered Microbes," published online April 20 by the Journal of the American Chemical Society. The report can be viewed at <a href="http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/ja809461u">http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/ja809461u</a>. 
 
 "In corn-to-ethanol, corn is the only feedstock and ethanol the only product," Voigt said. In the UCSF process, the engineered bacteria/yeast duo have successfully converted sugarcane bagasse, corn stover, switchgrass and poplar into methyl halide. While methyl halides are produced in nature at usually low volumes, it is a chemical familiar to the petrochemical industry that can be used in solvents, propellants and soil fumigants. Methyl halides can be manufactured into gasoline, olefins, aromatics, alcohols, ethers and other chemicals using zeolite catalysts. 
 
 UCSF research uses synthetic metagenomics to identify and select enzymes that were then genetically engineered into brewer's yeast to produce methyl halides instead of alcohol. The researchers grew their engineered yeast with a cellulose-eating bacteria originally isolated in the early 1980s from a French landfill. In the UCSF process, the yeast consumes the bacteria's products in a symbiotic relationship providing a novel conversion of biomass to the intermediate chemical.
 
 Several aspects of the process promise an energy efficient conversion process: the biomass is simply chopped finely and not chemically pre-processed; the microbes grow at 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit); and the methyl halides come off as a gas. The research team is now working on improving yields and rates. Work also needs to be done on the scalability of the fermentation and chemical catalysis of the methyl halide. The researchers have formed Biomex Inc. to help with commercialization, although the corporation is unfunded at this time.

Californians engineer microbes to produce methyl halides

Cellulosic ethanol developer KL Energy Corp. has announced it will expand into Brazil, as a result of a partnership with renewable energy business development company add blue Ltda. 
 
 Through an exclusive cooperation agreement, the companies will construct a demonstration-scale cellulosic ethanol plant in Brazil to implement KL Energy's enzymatic process. 
 
 KL Energy CEO Steve Corcoran told Biomass Magazine that the company began talks with add blue in mid-2008, when KL Energy executives visited several sugarcane mills and technology institutes and met with investors in Brazil. "Our interest was to add value to and improve the sustainability of the Brazilian sugarcane industry," he said. "Our highest financial and environmental returns would come from cellulosic ethanol and optimizing the 550 million ton crush capacity of the 360 existing mills. KL Energy and add blue quickly decided to team up and jointly develop the cellulosic and process optimization business in Brazil."
 
 The 5 MMly (1.3 MMgy) plant will utilize sugarcane bagasse as a feedstock. "The Brazilian sugarcane industry alone coproduces approximately 70 million dry tons of bagasse per year," Corcoran pointed out. "With the continued strong growth of the domestic fuel ethanol demand and ever-more efficient captive power generation, the bagasse quantities, which can be made available for cellulosic ethanol production, will increase rapidly." KL Energy and add blue plan to construct and operate the plant, which will be integrated into a sugarcane mill and will be expanded to commercial scale when the targeted yields are achieved.
 
 Corcoran said the sugarcane mill will supply approximately 15,000 to 20,000 tons of the bagasse feedstock in its first year of operation. The companies expect to have the facility operational by 2010. 
 
 KL Energy operates Western Biomass Energy, a cellulosic ethanol pilot plant in Upton, Wyo., which uses woody biomass as a feedstock. The company recently signed an agreement with Prairie Green Renewable Energy Inc. to provide its technology for use at a 5 MMgy to 10 MMgy cellulosic ethanol plant near Hudson Bay in northeastern Saskatchewan. The project is slated to begin construction in the third or fourth quarter of 2009.

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KL Energy expands to Brazil

Posted June 11, 2009, at 3:10 p.m. CST 
 
 On June 10, Royal Dutch Shell plc announced one of its Ottawa service stations would provide cellulosic E10 produced by Iogen Corp.; a day later, Shell announced it's blending the same fuel into the company's Shell V-Power race fuel at the 24 Hours of LeMans Race in France on June 13. 
 
 For one month, regular gasoline purchased at the Shell station will contain 10 percent cellulosic ethanol, which was produced using wheat and barley straw at Iogen's 2 MMly (500,000 gallon per year) demonstration-scale facility in Ottawa, which uses advanced conversion processes. 
 
 "This one small retail station in Ottawa is one big step forward for advanced biofuels globally," said Canada's Transport and Infrastructure Minister John Baird, who is also a longtime advocate of cellulose ethanol. "This is a great day for Canadian technology and proof that Canada's commitment to developing low carbon dioxide fuels is starting to pay dividends for the environment, farmers and consumers." 
 
 Gordon Quaiattini, president of the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association called the announcement of cellulosic E10 being sold at a Shell gas station "a milestone achievement for advanced biofuels. It is another example of Canada developing a vibrant and diverse advanced biofuels industry." 
 
 Shell first took an equity stake in Iogen in 2002. A year ago, the two companies announced an extended commercial alliance to accelerate developing and deploying cellulosic ethanol. According to Shell, the international company is working to meet government mandates for biofuel and with its experience and assets, has become the world's largest distributor of biofuels. "I am excited we are leading the pack in cellulosic ethanol production technology and, with this event, showing what is possible in the future," said Graeme Sweeney, Shell's executive vice president of future fuels and carbon dioxide. "While it will be some time before general customers can buy this product at local service stations, we are working with governments to make large-scale production economic." 
 
 Shell's global program includes several collaborations relating to advanced biofuels. The company is collaborating with Choren Industries GmbH on the production of biomass-to-liquids (BTL); Codexis Inc. on production of enzyme conversion; Virent Energy Systems Inc. on the development of biogasoline; and it has partnered with HR Biopetroleum Inc. to form the joint venture company Cellana to research marine algae for vegetable oil. 
 
 On July 11, Shell announced that for the first time an advanced biofuel would be used in the gasoline at the 24 Hours of Le Mans Race. "Shell is proud to be the official fuel supplier for the 24 Hours of Le Mans," said Richard Karlstetter, Shell's global technology manager for racing fuels. "We see motorsport as a technical test bed and we are excited about demonstrating Iogen cellulosic ethanol in our Shell V-Power gasoline race fuel this year." 
 
 Shell has previously blended BTL into its Shell V-Power diesel race fuel at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. A small amount will be used again, together with the established, high-performance gas-to-liquid component. 
 
 For the past two years, Iogen's fuel has been used to fuel Green Alternative Motorsports' cars at the 25 Hours of Thunder Hill Endurance Race in Willows, Calif. As well, Iogen's own fleet runs on its cellulosic E10 fuel and it also provides E85 to various departments within the Canadian federal government. 
 
 "Building a demo plant is one thing but you then need to go through the process of operating the new technology at scale, learning, modifying and lowering costs," said Brian Foody, Iogen's CEO. "With the volumes we're producing today, we're confident about the future." 
 
 SOURCE: ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE

Shell, Iogen announce cellulosic advancements

Waste-to-energy developer Terrabon LLC has received the first installment of an equity infusion of an undisclosed amount, from Texas-based oil refiner Valero Energy Corp. 
 
 Valero Energy owns and operates 16 oil refineries in the U.S. Its subsidiary, Valero Renewable Fuels, recently became the owner of bankrupt ethanol producer VeraSun Energy Corp assets, including five ethanol production facilities and a development site.
 
 Terrabon said it intends to use the funds to accelerate commercial deployment of its MixAlco technology, an acid fermentation process which converts biomass materials such as municipal solid waste into fuel chemicals. 
 
 The MixAlco process works by first treating the feedstock with lime to enhance its digestibility, and then ferments the biomass using a mixed-culture of microorganisms to produce a mixture of carboxylic acids. Calcium carbonate is added to the fermentation to neutralize the acids to form their corresponding carboxylate salts, which are dewatered, concentrated, dried and thermally converted to ketones. The ketones are hydrogenated to alcohols and refined into renewable gasoline, diesel and jet fuel.
 
 Terrabon believes the technology is economical for both large- and small-scale plants and that the plants can be built for about $2 per gallon. 
 
 In partnership with Texas A&M University, Terrabon currently operates a pilot plant at College Station, Texas, and is in the process of starting up an advanced biofuels research facility in Bryan, Texas, where the company will confirm MixAlco's commercial feasibility. 
 
 Terrabon is also working with the city of Port Arthur, Texas, to build a small plant designed to turn 50 tons of waste per day into organic salts, which would then be sent to a local refinery. Engineering work has started, and Terrabon is negotiating with the city on the use of the municipal waste and location of the project, according to the company.

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Valero Energy invests in waste-to-fuel company

Participants in the 25Farmer Network will grow sunflowers, sweet sorghum and switchgrass this summer for use in manufacturing biomaterials and biofuels. It is the first crop they will plant for the program. 
 
 The network is coordinated through Memphis Bioworks Foundation's AgBio initiative and consists of 25 western Tennessee farmers who will plant five acres each of experimental crops, a step toward identifying crops that can be grown locally for several potential products ranging from novel health products to biobased materials. The farmers will learn first-hand how to manage the new crops in the region and assess their variability as a long-term source in an ongoing pipeline, according to Memphis Bioworks. Their crops could be used in manufacturing biobased plastics, cleaning products, automotive components and consumer products such as high-fashion clothing and industrial plastics. 
 
 "We picked three crops to start with and we hope to expand the range and increase acreage of the crops each year," said Hillary Spain, Memphis Bioworks representative. "We start with growing anything and everything on small plots to see what grows the best and has a potential market." The farmer participants have a say in which experimental crop they grow. 
 
 Sunflowers have an oil market in Oklahoma, Spain said, and sweet sorghum can be used in manufacturing ethanol. "It's looking like it'll be a better crop for producing ethanol than corn," she said. Switchgrass production is targeted for future cellulosic ethanol production. "We're hoping there'll be a market for that in the next few years," Spain added. 
 For more information, see "Tennessee group launches 25Farmer Network" in the October 2008 issue of Biomass Magazine.

25Farmer Network plants new crop trials

One of the problems plaguing the biomass industry is the efficient transport and storage of mountains of biomass. In situations where wood chips are used the product may be handled several times before it reaches its final destination. That takes time and energy. Then there's the issue of drying wet biomass so it can produce the maximum amount of 
 British thermal units, while releasing the least amount of carbon dioxide.
 
 Randy Hill, president of APT Advanced Trailer and Equipment LP and the University of Idaho are betting they can solve this issue by using Advanced Trailer's agricultural drying trailers. Although prior testing has proven Hill's trailers can do the job, he wants to be able to show biomass processors the benefits of using his trailers. To do this, he is providing a grant and the use of a trailer to the university so it can be tested in a real-world situation.
 
 After talking with the people at UI, Hill saw their interest as a perfect opportunity to develop the specifications he needed to get into the biomass industry. "We know it works, we know it removes moisture from product," Hill says. "The question has been, is it feasible cost-wise for energy production to remove that moisture? We started these discussions last summer with the University of Idaho and initially the university was interested in just purchasing the equipment and putting it into use. But I saw that there would be value in using the equipment and having some research from professors who say here's how you do it, here's how long you do it and here's what the benefits are."
 
 UI took him up on his offer and has already developed plans to use the trailers. "The short-term goal is to look at how the technology of the trailer works," said Darin Saul, sustainability coordinator for UI. "The long-term goal is to integrate the trailer into a larger system that uses the waste heat from the steam plant to pre-dry the chips before they are burned." Initial testing will use natural gas to dry the chips, but the university believes that greater benefits will be realized when they are able to use their own waste heat. "My involvement in this is looking at how more affectively we can use biomass so we can further reduce our natural gas use on campus," Saul says. "We do that by better utilizing our biomass boiler."
 
 Mike Lyngholm, steam plant manager at UI, says they are still trying to get the process established by working with the utility company and the natural gas supplier, but he hoped to be using the trailers by the first week in May. The university has a wood-fired boiler that they use to heat 80 percent of the buildings on campus, he says. The problem is that Lyngholm has to have a huge stockpile of chips to keep up with the demand for heat in the dead of winter. The outside of that pile gets wet and freezes. "Right now I have a big wind-row of wet half-frozen fuel from the pile that we threw off to one side as we dug in," he says. "I've looked at dryers to install at the plant to dry everything but the energy needed to dry all the fuel would be rather expensive and the equipment is quite expensive." Lyngholm thinks he may be able to solve his dilemma by using one or two of the Advanced Trailers agricultural drying trailers to haul and dry the wood chips in the winter and then park the trailers in the summer when they aren't needed. Ultimately, Lyngholm wants to improve the efficiency of the boiler. "I've got some of the researchers here from the College of Natural Resources who are going to help me out and through the next 12 months run some test loads, put some probes in the loads and tweak the trailers for dying wood," he said. Those tests will determine how long the wood chips need to dry, what kind of temperatures are needed and if the process is efficient. 
 
 From Peanuts to Wood Chips
 The idea to use his trailers to transport biomass wasn't just a shot in the dark. Hill has been in the trailer business since the mid-90s, first working for GE's Dallas Trailer Fleet Services (formerly Transport International Pool) and then forming Advanced Trailer, a semi-trailer storage rental and sales business. When he was working for GE, people would call asking for storage trailers, "but GE wasn't in that business and wasn't interested in that market," Hill says. 
 
 Storage trailers are outdated and retired 18-wheelers, which Hill buys and hauls to Texas where they are cleaned, painted and decaled. "I was the first guy in Dallas who really aggressively approached that market," he says. "I saw opportunity not only to build my own rental fleet but to sell to other companies in the rental business."
 
 Shortly after he started his business, there was a change in the west Texas landscape that had a profound affect on his company. Peanut growers from central Texas started to see the area as a perfect place to grow their crop in a rotation with cotton. "The climate and the soil were perfect for growing peanuts and there was a good supply of water," Hill says. "West Texas became a new frontier for the peanut industry." There was only one hitch. The fields in central Texas were 65 to 300 acres, and in west Texas they were 1,000 to 2,000 acres. "The problem was that when they harvested those big fields they didn't have a piece of equipment that could handle it," Hill said. 
 
 At the time, peanuts were hauled out of the field using small wagons (16-to-20-feet-long) pulled by pickups. The peanuts were loaded into the wagons in the field, brought back to a buying point where they were graded and tested for moisture content, which determined how long the peanuts would have to be dried before they could be stored in a warehouse. 
 
 The wagons had been used for 50 years but were quickly becoming obsolete in areas with 1,000-acre fields. It just so happened that farmers in Lubbock, Texas, were helping with a Texas Tech study on the feasibility of using the wagons. "They came up with a concept that we should be able to haul and dry peanuts in semi-trailers and 18-wheelers," Hill said. 
 
 Then in 1996, a farmer from west Texas bought 100 semi-trailers from Hill with the intention of using them to dry peanuts. That purchase opened up a whole new market for Advanced Trailers. The farmers would buy Hill's trailers and then convert them so they could be used with their stationary dryers. "And it worked-drying the peanuts in the semis worked," he says. To accommodate the semi-trailers, the dryer maker manufactured a new dryer with a bigger motor, fan and heating element that could be used to push the hot air under the floor of the trailer, Hill said. 
 
 News of Advanced Trailers' peanut drying semi-trailers soon spread to the Southeast where 85 percent of the peanut crop is grown. Once it was determined that the trailers worked there, Hill was asked if he could develop a completed product so the growers didn't have to convert the trailers themselves. "I called one of my customers in west Texas and asked if I could look at a trailer," Hill said. "I brought in an engineer and we looked at the trailers-we looked at broken trailers, we looked at trailers that were operating-and we basically said here are the specific needs for the trailer, and we designed and developed one that would do the job." The first year he was in the peanut trailer converting business he sold 50 trailers. "The next year it was like we were the peanut trailer drying experts and these people started coming from Georgia. Our little market in west Texas had been going on for six or seven years, but now we were embarking on the big market-the Southeast."
 
 In 2002, Hill sold his rental business but retained the company name, the sales business and his intellectual property. "I could see that there were other opportunities for this trailer and we were just starting to embark on this becoming something very special," he says.
 
 In 2004, Hill opened a plant in Georgia so he could build the trailers closer to the customers. The plant produced 360 trailers in its first year and 670 the second year.
 
 Entering the Biomass Market
 Because of the seasonality of the peanut industry, Hill decided it was time to look into some new markets. Two years ago he received a phone call from the Herty Advanced Materials Development Center in Savannah, Ga. They wanted to try drying wood chips in one of his trailers. That was just the spark that Hill needed. "We kept hearing discussion about the need to remove moisture from biomass-there is a big market for that so I started looking into it a little bit further," he says. "I started having a lot of discussions with the U.S. Department of Energy and different owners of biomass facilities around the country and we came up with the idea that this market could be 10 times the size of the peanut industry, especially with the popularity and the focus on carbon emissions and renewable alternative energy." 
 
 Hill also did some advertising, which led him to UI. "The university told me that if they can take that moisture content from 50 percent or 60 percent, which is common, to 30 percent their burning and Btus will be twice as efficient," he says. "They are burning roughly five trailer loads a day. If you take that and you cut off one trailer load a day, just one, that's a savings of $300,000 a year."
 
 Hill was encouraged when he first arrived at UI and saw the system that the university had set up to fuel its boiler. "I drove to that facility and it was as if I was going back 12 years and driving into a peanut town because the facility, the equipment that they use in the process, the way that they unload the trailers everything was just like peanuts."
 
 The testing at UI is important because it will determine whether it's economically feasible to use the trailers for biomass. "In peanuts, we are talking about a load of peanuts that's worth $35,000," he says. "A load of wood chips is worth about $1,000. You can't afford to spend $200 to $300 drying a load of wood chips like you can with peanuts." 
 
 Hill would also like to see the benefits of using waste heat to dry the chips, which they will be testing at UI. "When we use these trailers in big applications with 100 trailers in one facility and build a ducting system that takes dry, hot, free excess heat and we put it into a fan, we are using our exhaust to dry our product before it goes into a burner. That's what we see as the future, and the future is here today." 
 
 Rona Johnson is the editor of Biomass Magazine. Reach her at <a href="mailto:rjohnson@bbiinternational.com">rjohnson@bbiinternational.com</a> or (701) 738-4940.

Hill would like to see his trailers used in the biomass industry to transport and dry wood chips./PHOTO: ADVANCED TRAILER

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Randy Hill believes he has the solution for transporting and drying large amounts of wet, woody biomass. The president of Advanced Trailer is working with the University of Idaho to evaluate the economic and environmental benefits of using his agricultural crop drying trailers to move biomass.

Have Trailer-Will Move Biomass

The drive to develop sustainable nonfood, starch-based ethanol feedstocks and more efficient conversion processes is intensifying as the U.S. attempts to reduce ethanol's carbon footprint by transitioning from corn to cellulosic ethanol. That has prompted researchers at North Carolina State University to take a closer look at plants, such as duckweed, that could be a potential feedstock for ethanol production.
 
 Duckweed has traditionally been studied because of its inherently rich protein content at 30 percent to 35 percent on a dry-weight basis. The purpose was to explore whether duckweed could be a protein source for animal and human food. A growing interest in sustainable ethanol feedstock development, however, has researchers exploring the plant's starch content.
 
 North Carolina State University researchers Anne-Marie Stomp, associate professor of forestry, Jay Cheng, professor of biological and agricultural engineering, and Mike Yablonski, post-doctoral research associate, are discovering that duckweed can be used to clean up animal waste at industrial hog farms and could be used to make ethanol. They have determined that duckweed grown on swine wastewater can produce five to six times more starch per acre than corn, according to Stomp, who co-authored the research with Cheng. 
 
 The research, funded by the Biofuels Center of North Carolina, was presented at the annual conference of the Institute of Biological Engineering in March in Santa Clara, Calif. 
 
 "The original investigations focused pretty much entirely on the protein side," Stomp says. "At the time all of that work was being done, there was no compelling economic reason to domesticate this plant because we had plenty of other plant protein sources in grain and legumes. Back then, the prices of those grains and legumes were low and the market was fully supplied." 
 
 The one challenge that has impeded duckweed's progress in becoming a sustainable, dedicated energy crop for biofuels production or being used as a bioremediator for farm or city wastewater treatment operations is the fact that it wasn't domesticated. "The trick to domesticating duckweed is going to be how much it will cost per ton to grow this stuff," Stomp says, adding that data on economic feasibility will be released later this year. "That number provides a threshold for commercial viability," she adds. 
 
 Cheng and Stomp are currently developing a pilot-scale project to further investigate the best way to establish a large-scale system for growing duckweed in animal wastewater, and then harvesting and drying the plant. "We're actually exploiting a lot of existing technology used in the food industry, because duckweed is like a slurry," Stomp says. "You can pump it, sieve it and do other things."
 
 In the meantime, duckweed will remain of interest to scientists as a viable synergistic component to the renewable fuels/energy sectors, possibly even being used with corn in existing ethanol operations, according to Stomp. "We're not saying we're going to replace corn," she says. "It's just another option out there for ethanol producers. It's the idea that if we're going to solve this energy crisis we're going to need a bunch of ideas. One idea isn't going to save us."
 
 Water Purification Potential 
 Propagated in agricultural and/or municipal wastewater, duckweed naturally extracts nitrogen and phosphate pollutants. This could benefit large-scale hog farms where animal waste is stored in large lagoons for biological treatment. Duckweed's bioremediation properties allow it to capture pollutants and prevent their release into the air. The plant could save farmers money because they wouldn't have to purchase expensive desalination equipment for their lagoons. "Duckweed is exquisitely good at recovering low levels of nutrients from water," Stomp says. "It gets the water clean enough for reuse naturally, and it's virtually cost-free for farmers."
 
 Duckweed can also reduce algae growth (by shading), coliform bacteria counts and mosquito larvae on ponds, while concentrating heavy metals, capturing or degrading toxic chemicals and encouraging the growth of other aquatic animals such as frogs or fowl. Additionally, duckweed is one of the fastest growing plant species on the planet. Scientists are also beginning to unlock duckweed's potential as a player in carbon cycling and carbon sequestration. 
 
 Duckweed bioaccumulates about 99 percent of the nutrients contained in wastewater and produces a valuable protein-rich biomass as a byproduct, which can be fed to certain fish and added to poultry feed. Duckweed can also assimilate small hydrocarbons such as glucose and sucrose and, as a result, perform heterotrophic growth from the wastewater. The nutrients can be removed permanently from the system as the plants are harvested.
 
 Due to its high affinity for absorbing pollutants in wastewater, Stomp posed a hypothetical scenario where the use of duckweed by farmers could mutually benefit a city willing to provide wastewater effluent for fresh water reuse. For example, a farmer could pay the city or municipality for its wastewater and have it transported to his farm, a concept that some people refer to as duckweed-based wastewater treatment, Stomp says. The farmer could take that wastewater and mix it with his livestock wastewater to dilute it so that it can be used to grow duckweed, which would clean the water and the farmer could sell it back to the municipality for reuse. 
 
 Calling on Genome Sequencing
 The duckweed family, or Lemnaceae, is a family of flowering plants. Specifically, Lemnaceae is an aqueous monocot-similar to grasses and palms-and is divided into five genera: Lemna, Spirodela, Wolffia, Landoltia and Wolffiella. Of these five genera, Spirodela is the largest and Wolffiella is the smallest. 
 
 Researchers at Rutgers University's Waksman Institute of Microbiology-a research facility on the Busch Campus of Rutgers University in New Jersey-channeled its resources in July 2008 into sequencing the Spirodela polyrhiza genome. The Spirodela has the least DNA per cell compared with its genera counterparts. The team aims to investigate duckweed's potential for sustainable sequestration of carbon dioxide, ecosystem carbon cycling and biofuel production. 
 
 In related research, the U.S. DOE's Joint Genome Institute announced in July 2008 that its Community Sequencing Program would support the genomic sequencing of Spirodela polyrhiza as one of its priority projects this year directed toward new biomass and bioenergy programs. 
 
 Preliminary findings by the Rutgers research team found that, through high-throughput sequencing, specific duckweed varieties obtained from 50-year-old sterile duckweed cultures shipped from Switzerland are comprised of Bradyrhizobium-a nitrogen-fixing bacteria that forms nodules on host plants. Bradyrhizobium also have symbolic relationships with legume plants, which can't live without the bacteria's essential nitrogen-fixing processes, according to Todd Michael, a member of the Waksman Institute and an assistant professor of plant biology and pathology.
 
 "This was really surprising to us because we didn't expect to find this microorganism," Michael says. "There's still a chance this could be one level of contamination. Now the question is: Is this bacteria DNA actually affixing nitrogen for the Spirodela? This is a totally new relationship that we didn't expect, but this could explain why the plant grows so fast."
 
 Michael said the research team is also developing methods to exploit the Wolffia gene. "This would give us the potential to do things like enhancing the DNA of genes to uptake specific types of heavy metals or modulate how fast we control growth rate," he says. 
 
 By harnessing the naturally occurring ability of plants to transform genes by way of various DNA interactions in their own natural habitats, Michael's research team intends to continue researching these specific duckweed varieties in sterile culture environments to determine what the ecology of each looks like in different locations and the behavior of each with an array of other microorganisms. "We can then use that information to go back and maybe suggest specific varieties for different locations, and maybe utilize the genetic makeup we already have to target specific applications," Michael says. 
 
 Bryan Sims is a Biomass Magazine associate editor. Reach him at <a href="mailto:bsims@bbiinternational.com">bsims@bbiinternational.com</a> or (701) 746-4950.

Stomp and Cheng examine various strains of duckweed at their pilot program at North Carolina State University in Raleigh./PHOTO: Roger Winstead, North Carolina State University

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The leaf structure in Spirodela is referred to as a frond. Duckweed generally multiplies by vegetative reproduction. The daughter (front) develops in the pocket of the mother frond and emerges as a new plant./PHOTO: Todd Michael, Rutgers University

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Duckweed can grow in any body of freshwater in the world. It grows especially well in polluted water, such as in the Raritan Canal in Delaware as shown here. Each year lawns along the Raritan Canal are fertilized and duckweed quickly grows to cover t

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Todd Michael member, Waksman Institute of Microbiology

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Since the late 1960s, scientists have studied duckweed for animal and human consumption because of its high protein content. Researchers are now tapping into the plant's 
innate environmental benefits, from desalinating wastewater to exploring its potential as a viable starch-based feedstock for ethanol production.

Duckweed Quacks Volumes of Potential

Homeowners in Cincinnati, Columbus and Dayton, Ohio, who use wood pellet stoves and furnaces to heat their homes, now have the option of having the fuel delivered directly to their residences. 
 
 Wood pellet provider PelletSales.com said the new option was offered in response to a record increase of pellet stove and furnace installations and an increased demand for residential delivery.
 
 Jennifer Nickaulas, PelletSales.com marketing coordinator, said the company expects to see a greater interest in wood pellets now that they offer home delivery to more areas. "We're constantly expanding our service areas based on demand, and we're seeing that people overwhelmingly value both their time and money, preferring to have wood pellets delivered," she said. "It makes sense, really, because someone who heats their home with natural gas for example, doesn't have to haul the fuel in one tank at a time from the store, so why should someone heating with biomass have to do so?"
 
 The company recommends purchasing wood pellets in early spring because oil prices are forecast to rise again, and it is typically the most cost-effective time of year to purchase pellets. As of April 14, crude oil was selling for $50 per barrel, up from less than $35 per barrel in February. 
 
 Along with the option of having pellets delivered, customers can also choose to lower their delivery costs by using a community pooling registry on the company Web site. The registry helps customers find others in their area who are also looking for pellet fuel with whom they can share the cost of transporting the pellets. A truck can carry approximately 24 tons of fuel. Nickaulas said the amount of pellets a homeowner burns in a typical season varies based on home size and temperature preference, but most purchase three to five tons a season. 
 
 Pellet pricing varies by zip code and time of year. For current pricing, visit the Web site at <a href="http://www.pelletsales.com">www.pelletsales.com</a>.

Due to increased demand, residents in Cincinnati, Columbus and Dayton, Ohio, have the option of having wood pellets delivered directly to their homes./PHOTO: PELLETSALES.COM

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Ohio residents get wood pellet delivery option

Small-scale ethanol production using the Q microbe should begin by the end of the year, according to Jeff Sharp, founder and vice president of Qteros, formerly Sun Ethanol, the company formed in 2006 to develop Q microbe technology. 
 
 The pre-treatment phase will occur at Solutia, a specialty products plant in Springfield, Mass. The site is advantageous because labs and other necessary facilities already exist there, according to Susan Leschine, a professor of microbiology at the University of Massachusetts. 
 
 "The Solutia site is where we are going to put at least one phase of our scale-up," Sharp said. "Other phases may also be at Solutia. They are being engineered as well. The final site is yet to be determined."
 
 Developing the pre-treatment pilot at Solutia will cost about $6 million, Sharp said. He declined to release costs for other phases, as they are still in the engineering stage. Since Q microbe technology development is only in the pilot process, ethanol will be produced in small quantities, Sharp said.
 
 The conversion rate depends on the feedstock, he said, but it's better than 80 percent. The feedstock is all cellulosic and includes corn stover, sugarcane, woody biomass and other energy crops. "Just about anything we feed it, it breaks down and turns it into ethanol," he said.
 
 The Q microbe, found in the soil near a Massachusetts reservoir, simplifies the ethanol process by condensing the enzymatic hydrolysis and fermenting processes into one step, said Leschine, who is on the team of scientists that discovered the trait.
 
 It's a huge savings in capital costs, she says, because two separate facilities aren't necessary. The Q microbe also requires a less harsh pre-treatment, she added. "Definitely the financial aspect is the most important benefit," she said. "Making it viable and cost effective is critical." 
 
 The team was looking for microbes that make good enzymes when the discovery was made, Leschine said. "It wasn't until we looked carefully at how it does the conversion process that we discovered this," she said.

Q microbe ethanol production to begin this year

If Wisconsin would take advantage of "low-hanging fruit" and cash in on the state's biomass potential via small-scale distributed energy systems, advantages would reach both the agricultural sector and rural communities, according to a recently released Program on Agricultural Technologies (PATS) policy perspective. "How Could Small Scale Distributed Energy Benefit Wisconsin Agriculture and Rural Communities?" was published in late April. 
 
 Authors Gary Radloff, director of policy and communications with the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, and Alan Turnquist, outreach specialist at the Program on Agriculture Technology Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, say a distributed energy system in the state might curb logistical challenges that come along with large-scale, industrial production, such as biomass feedstock aggregation, short-term storage and transportation. "In policy discussion, we need to keep in mind policy 
 incentives for smaller-scale operations," Radloff said. 
 
 Wisconsin has almost 15 million tons of potential biomass, the paper states, and if smaller local operations use that feedstock, it could increase energy production opportunities and increase returns for rural communities. It's not just the scale of biomass potential that makes distributed energy a powerful tool in Wisconsin, but also its diversity, Turnquist said. "The single biggest benefit is that we have the capacity to do it right now," he said. 
 
 Small-scale operations are starting to pop up around the state, according to Radloff, and Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle has ordered four university campuses in the state to "come off the grid" and switch to biomass.
 
 If more energy is produced and used locally, it can complement other renewable energy sources such as wind and solar, Radloff said. The two researchers compare local energy production with something most Wisconsinites can relate to, a local farmer's market, where the money locals spend goes to other locals they might know personally. 
 
 It is possible to construct a system in which a portion of the renewable energy dividend stays at home and the long-term benefits are shared by the landowner, farmer, forester or local community, according to Turnquist and Radloff, as several biomass technology options can be economically efficient when located in rural settings, as indicated by studies and real-world examples. 
 
 But what if local people don't want the energy systems in their communities? According to Radloff and Turnquist, local systems would require local participation, including organization and decision making, that could eliminate the not in my backyard, or NIMBY, opposition that wind farms and new ethanol plants have met. If the payoff and decision-making processes stay in the community, locals may rally more support toward community renewable energy products, they said. "It's not just about natural resources and infrastructure," Turnquist said. "It's also about people and communities." 
 
 Opportunities also exist for small-scale projects to partner with larger-scale operations, according to the authors. For example, they cite Xcel Energy's 2008 proposal to add a biomass-to-energy burner to its existing plant in Ashland, Wis., which already uses woody biomass. 
 
 The amount of biomass that can be produced and harvested in Wisconsin is an open question, the paper states, along with how much the communities will actually benefit from bioenergy and other renewables. But, it adds, local energy production is an important part of the state's economic future and policies should be crafted to ensure the economic and energy returns go to rural Wisconsin residents and that groups undertaking distributed energy projects can manage the risk in the bioenergy market.

Small-scale distributed energy to benefit Wisconsin

Landfill gas will be piped from Texas to California to help the Sacramento Municipal Utility District meet its renewable portfolio standard. SMUD announced April 20 it had signed a 15-year contract with Shell Energy North America for 6 billion British thermal units of gas per day. Most of that will be from a landfill near Dallas, supplemented by a variable amount of conventional natural gas. The gas will be used to fuel the SMUD Cosumnes Power Plant near Sacramento, Calif.
 
 "Shell is the intermediary and providing balancing services," explained Barry Brunelle, SMUD supervisor for natural gas operations. "We were concerned about how this variable supply would work with our system." Shell worked out the contracts with both SMUD and the landfill gas developer, and will supplement the landfill gas volumes with a varying rate of conventional natural gas to supply SMUD with a consistent supply. "At the end of the month, Shell will bill us and let us know how much was conventional and how much was renewable," Brunelle said.
 
 SMUD expects the landfill gas to provide about 8 percent of its renewable target in 2010, or 200 to 300 gigawatt-hours of renewable power per year. SMUD will pay Shell approximately $21 million a year for the landfill gas, which works out to approximately $90 per megawatt-hour of electricity. "The cost of this supply is higher than our expected energy prices for nonrenewable energy but lower than the expected cost of renewables," Brunelle said. 
 
 One month earlier, on March 19, SMUD announced it had signed a 15-year contract with Gas Recovery Systems LLC, a subsidiary of Fortistar Methane Group, for the purchase of approximately 1.5 megawatts of renewable energy from a plant near Santa Cruz, Calif., generating electricity from landfill gas. The expected output is 12 gigawatt hours per year.
 
 SMUD's goal is to have renewable energy account for 33 percent of its power supply by 2020. Last year, renewable energy accounted for approximately 19 percent of SMUD's power supply.

SMUD to purchase landfill gas from Texas

Dynamotive USA Inc. has secured a supply of 220,000 tons per year of sawdust from Southeast timber producer Springhill Land and Timber for a proposed bio-oil plant in southern Arkansas. That's more than enough to operate the facility, according to Delphin Thebaud, a Dynamotive representative, as it will require 200 tons per day, operating about 330 days per year. 
 
 The contract secures the feedstock supply for an initial term of 10 years with pricing linked to energy prices in the region, according to Dynamotive USA, a subsidiary of Dynamotive Energy Systems Corp. The company is working with the El Dorado Chamber of Commerce on development of the plant, it said. Dynamotive Energy uses fast pyrolysis technology to convert waste cellulosic biomass into bio-oil for power and heat generation. Bio-oil can be further converted into liquid transportation fuels and chemicals. 
 
 No specific site has been named for the $40 million plant, but the state of Arkansas was chosen because of its strong alternative energy policies, according to the company. A final selection should be made by the end of the year and construction should begin in 2010. The plant will incorporate Dynamotive's new technology on upgrading of bio-oil from lignocellulosic biomass pyrolysis, scheduled to be deployed in 2011, according to Dynamotive. The $7 million upgrade module is included in the $40 million figure.

Dynamotive secures feedstock for bio-oil plant

The weather in Portland, Ore., may have been glum, but it didn't dampen the spirits of attendees at the International Biomass Conference & Expo, which was held from April 28-30. 
 
 From the moment registration opened to the last session, the Portland Convention Center buzzed with excitement. 
 
 Prior to the event, 134 attendees participated in an industry tour of three Oregon biomass processing plants-animal bedding and fuel pellet producer West Oregon Wood Products, food residue-to-ethanol producer Natural Energy, and Clean Water Services, a wastewater treatment center that produces power through anaerobic digestion and gas recovery.
 
 During the tour, 133 exhibitors set up their booths on the sold-out trade show floor preparing for the 1,045 people who registered to attend the event. Attendance increased by more than 20 percent, compared to the 2008 conference.
 
 Conference organizer BBI International was pleased with the turnout and is already mapping out next year's event. "The trade show sold at a much faster pace than we anticipated," said Joe Bryan, vice president of media and events for BBI International. "Next year, as the economy improves and demand for biomass power, fuels and chemicals soars, we fully expect to double attendance and the size of the trade show." 
 
 Changing the World's Energy Future
 At the opening general session, the importance of biomass was emphasized as a solution to ever-increasing energy demands and a way to solve America's dependence on foreign energy sources. In his opening remarks, BBI International CEO Mike Bryan told attendees that while the road to success in the biomass industry may be long and challenging, opportunity is great and the possibilities are endless.
 
 From Bryan's perspective, in the future all biomass technologies may have the potential to be successful to some degree, but some will be on a faster track than others. 
 
 Companies in the industry that don't have a well-defined niche may have difficulty knowing how to position themselves. "One of the challenges in the biomass industry is the large variety of technologies-direct firing of biomass, gasification, pyrolysis, anaerobic digestion, fermentation, algae production-the problem is we don't really know for sure, at this juncture, which of these technologies are going to be successful in the years ahead," Bryan said. "But let me be clear on one thing. I believe that when the oil refineries of today are nothing but rusted relics of a past generation, renewable biomass will still be powering our world. Biomass will change the world's energy future, and the wonderful thing about that is it will change it in a way that does not create global conflict."
 
 Oregon Department of Energy Director Michael Grainey reminded the general session crowd of exhibitors, project developers, technology providers, academia and other attendees of the energy challenges the U.S. faces. "In Oregon, we spend over $12 billion a year on energy; half of that is for oil-most of it goes out of state, and much of it goes out of the country. Your state may be similar." 
 
 Grainey pointed out that the U.S. imports more than two-thirds of the oil it consumes, which is twice the amount that was imported when the oil embargo drove up fuel prices more than 30 years ago. "While the recent drop in oil prices provides relief, we are all still paying over five times the price we paid for oil just a few years ago," he said. "Oil is the largest cause of our trade deficit, our balance payments deficit, and the single largest cause of inflation." 
 
 Major renewable energy initiatives have been developed in Oregon that are especially important to biomass, Grainey said, including an energy loan program which provides loans up to $20 million to cover capital costs of constructing renewable energy facilities. "We have over 30 biomass projects-totaling more than $100 million in landfill gas, cogeneration and biofuel facilities," he said. "We also have two tax credits-a capital investment tax credit called a business energy tax credit and a production tax credit-to encourage biomass use." Oregon also has a renewable fuel standard (RFS) for ethanol which has been in effect for more than a year, and has legislation pending to activate a biodiesel RFS this fall. 
 
 Grainey said President Barack Obama and his administration have shown their support for biomass. "Even before [Obama's] campaign, from his remarks you could tell that his belief in renewable energy is deeply felt," he said. "It is encouraging to know that we now have a strong ally at the very top of the White House-we have some fundamental choices to make about our energy future, and obligations to weigh the impacts of our energy choices. Your efforts will decide whether biomass and other renewable energy will play an increasing role in our future, or whether we will continue on a path of increased fossil fuels, increased pollution and increased imports." 
 
 Fighting for Legislative Support 
 Biomass Power Association President Robert Cleaves changed the focus of the general session to the importance of passing legislation that supports the aims and initiatives of the biomass industries. Cleaves spoke directly to the substance of continued energy and environmental policy reform. 
 
 "We (the biomass industry) have incredible growth potential," Cleaves said. "By the time our kids are in college, every town in America will be combusting wood, gasifying municipal solid waste (MSW), digesting manure and making biofuels-but let's get real, this is a very hard business."
 
 Cleaves said the current focus of the BPA is to urge the government to provide a correct set of incentives to make the biomass industry and those involved successful because in the end, subsidies-whether outright subsidies such as production tax credits, or carbon tax credits-are what will make the industry move. "Without biomass, this country doesn't stand a prayer for meeting its renewable energy goals," he said. "If you look at the potential of biomass as a base-load, carbon-neutral alternative fuel to coal, things get really exciting." 
 
 Cleaves referenced a study recently brought before the U.S. Senate Energy Committee, which indicated biomass gives the "biggest bang for the taxpayers buck" in replacing carbon. "The study said if you look at wind, it has a 30 percent capacity factor and if you consider a 30 percent capacity factor with the 2-cent production tax credit (PTC) that it gets, it costs the taxpayer $12.28 per ton of carbon removed," he said. "Geothermal costs the taxpayer $7.74 cents, and biomass is close to $3 per ton [of carbon removed], at 1 cent for the PTC. For every dollar spent on a PTC, biomass removes four times the amount of carbon for the same dollar spent on wind. That's not to say that wind is not an important technology in meeting our renewable energy goals, but it does highlight the fact that there is something wrong with this situation."
 
 Defining Biomass 
 So with all of this potential, why is the biomass industry unable to realize faster growth, greater support and better traction? "The answer is complicated, but I think it has a lot to do with failed government policies," Cleaves said. "Let's look at federal policies-we have no uniform definition of biomass, or what is considered renewable, or what is considered advanced technology. These terms are applied disparately among the states, and inconsistently at the federal level."
 
 Cleaves pointed out there is no uniform definition for biomass, which varies in the Farm Bill and the Federal Transportation Bill, which are both at odds with the U.S. EPA definition and the U.S. Department of Defense definition. "It tends to be somewhat comical," he said. "Biomass should be a simple concept. If you look at the internal revenue code, you find a simple definition. It says essentially, biomass is organic material other than fossil fuel."
 
 As a nation, the U.S. can't decide which technology it likes or dislikes and why, which causes incredible confusion in the marketplace and for developers, according to Cleaves. "Quite frankly, it's mess," he said. Take New England for example, Connecticut encourages combusting urban wood waste and New Hampshire bans it. Massachusetts bans combusting MSW, Maine excludes it from its renewable portfolio standard and Connecticut provides renewable energy credits for it." 
 
 Cleaves pointed out the lack of neutrality in the current energy tax policy, describing the internal revenue code as a "mish-mash of incoherent, irrational credits with largely no basis in economics or sound environmental policy." "On the whole, biomass is not well-treated," he said. "Every time we go to the Congressional meetings, we are told, ‘We don't really understand why you only get a half-credit; that must have been an oversight by congress.' We know it wasn't an oversight, because in the end, what it came down to is that there was only so much money to go around and industries with the largest lobbying teams won." 
 
 From Cleaves' perspective, in order to excel, the biomass industry needs to succeed in the next era of environmental energy policy expenditure. "The BPA is hard at work crafting a legislative solution to be successful in that fight," he said. "This industry needs to fight for every scrap that it is given, and it needs to be heard, well-organized and well-funded." 
 
 One of the BPA's main goals for the future is focused on the preservation of what the industry already has by extending the production tax credit for existing facilities, which expires at the end of this year. "If we let the production tax credit expire for existing facilities, then we will never restart plants that are currently shut in places like Maine and California," Cleaves said. "It will put many plants at risk of shutting down."
 
 Besides extension of the current tax credit, Cleaves said the industry must also fight for what it doesn't have. "There is no policy justification for biomass being the one-half credit technology," he said. "If this country is really serious about renewable energy, it needs to pony-up. For too long, renewable energy technologies have lived in an uncomfortable coexistence-where they all are producing green power, but chasing a limited pie."
 
 The 2010 International Biomass Conference & Expo will be held May 4-6 in Minneapolis. 
 
 Anna Austin is a Biomass Magazine associate editor. Reach her at <a href="mailto:aaustin@bbiinternational.com">aaustin@bbiinternational.com</a> or (701) 738-4968.

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Michael Grainey, director, Oregon Department of Energy

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Robert Cleaves, president, Biomass Power Association 

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The 2009 International Biomass Conference & Expo drew a record crowd of more than 1,000 people to Portland, Ore., where they networked, shared and absorbed information, and determined how to successfully move forward in the growing biomass industry.

Biomass in the City of Roses

Posted May 20, 2009, at 10:25 a.m. CST
 
 Enerkem, a waste-to-biofuels technology company, today announced that Enerkem GreenField Alberta Biofuels has successfully completed the necessary environmental regulatory process and has been granted a permit to commence construction of a commercial facility to produce biofuels and green chemicals from sorted municipal solid waste in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
 
 "This is North America's first unconditional commercial permit ever awarded to produce advanced biofuels from sorted municipal solid waste. This unprecedented project is set to change the dynamics of the waste and fuel industries by making waste - that would otherwise be landfilled - a resource for transportation fuels," said Vincent Chornet, president and CEO of Enerkem. "The City of Edmonton is a leader in waste management and is now pioneering this solution which is to become a model for cities around the globe"
 
 The permit was granted by Alberta Environment under the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act of the Province of Alberta. The regulatory process entails a series of meetings and studies as well as a consultation with the public. The project successfully met all required regulatory environmental standards including air emissions and was awarded a permit allowing for construction and operation.
 
 In 2008, EGAB entered into a 25-year agreement with the city of Edmonton to build and operate a waste-to-biofuels facility on municipal land and to receive the city's sorted municipal solid waste as feedstock. The city of Edmonton will supply 100,000 metric tons of sorted municipal solid waste per year. The sorted municipal solid waste to be used is the end-waste after recycling and composting. These residues would otherwise be landfilled.
 
 Construction of the biofuels facility is expected to begin by the end of 2009, at a total cost of approximately $70 million Canadian ($61 million U.S.). The City of Edmonton and the Province of Alberta, through the Alberta Energy Research Institute, are contributing a combined $20 million Canadian ($17 million U.S.) to its production. Upon completion, the facility will initially produce 36 million litres (9.5 million gallons) of ethanol per year, reducing Alberta's carbon dioxide (CO2) footprint by more than 6 million tons over the next 25 years - the equivalent of removing 12,000 cars off the road every year. The plant will also contribute to meeting the Canadian and provincial 5 percent renewable fuel mandate.
 
 SOURCE: ENERKEM

EGAB awarded permit to build commercial waste-to-biofuels facility

Posted May 20, 2009, at 11:20 a.m. CST
 
 More than 150 Michigan scientists, researchers and academia signed a letter urging Michigan's congressional delegation to support federal policies to reduce carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas emissions.
 
 The letter was delivered to Michigan's U.S. Sens. Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow and 15 U.S. representatives. Signers included nearly 70 scientists and professors from the University of Michigan, and more than 60 from Michigan State University, with expertise in biology, agriculture, chemistry, forestry, zoology, meteorology and climatology. 
 
 "We are convinced that immediate action is necessary to avoid the worst consequences of global warming on Michigan's economy and environment, including the Great Lakes," the letter stated. "While slowing the damaging effects of climate change poses enormous challenges, we also believe such action presents Michigan with real opportunities to reinvigorate our economy and improve the quality of life for all Michiganders." 
 
 The letter emphasized that controlling carbon emissions will help take advantage of clean renewable resources and energy efficient technologies. "A workable federal policy to combat global warming will also encourage researchers, investors and businesses to accelerate development and deployment of next generation energy technologies," it said. "Putting a price on carbon is a critical step toward building clean energy future for the U.S. and in Michigan." 
 
 The letter recognized that recent studies have shown that capping carbon pollution and promoting energy efficiency could create millions of jobs nationally and more than 150,000 jobs in Michigan. Also, agriculture is the state's second largest industry and contributes $60.1 billion to the state's economy annually and provides more than 1 million jobs. Many of the jobs and much of the economic impact provided by Michigan's agriculture industry could be lost if climate change continues, according to the scientists. 
 
 "Michigan universities are leaders in agriculture and bioenergy research, and Michigan farmers stand to gain from federal policy that promotes renewable energy and caps carbon pollution," the letter said. "Farms, for instance, could realize new revenue by leasing land for wind turbines and assigning unproductive cropland to carbon offset programs and producing biomass for next generation renewable fuels." 
 
 To view the letter, visit <a href="http://www.byrumfisk.com/scientists_presspacket_051909.pdf">http://www.byrumfisk.com/scientists_presspacket_051909.pdf</a>.

Michigan scientists: Carbon capping policies vital

Posted May 20, 2009, at 1:25 p.m. CST
 	
 Liquid fuels from biomass and coal could reduce petroleum use and carbon dioxide emissions in the U.S. over the next 25 years, according to a recently released report, but producing the alternative fuels in an environmentally conscious way requires significant research, development and commercial demonstration.
 
 ‘Liquid Transportation Fuels from Coal and Biomass: Technological Status, Costs and Environmental Impacts' looks at reducing the nation's dependence on foreign oil by transitioning to coal and biomass liquid fuels. The report, the first in a series for the National Academies' America's Energy Future project, discusses existing and future technologies, environmental impacts, associated costs and barriers to deployment. The report also estimates potential deployment on three timelines: less than 10 years, from 10 to 25 years and beyond 25 years. 
 
 "We suggest that the mixing of biomass and coal be explored," said David Tilman, professor at the University of Minnesota-St. Paul, and vice chair of the Panel on Alternative Liquid Transportation Fuels. "It can actually be a carbon-neutral or carbon-negative fuel."
 
 The research team made three important findings: an adequate supply of biomass exists-an estimated 550 million tons annually by 2020-without running into direct and indirect land-usage issues; a mixture of coal and biomass, when gasified with carbon capture, is likely to provide more cost-efficient and greenhouse gas effective fuels; and maximizing carbon capture and sequestration is vital, according to Tilman. Geologic carbon storage is a high priority, he added, as it needs to be proven viable and safe on a commercial-scale before deployment of coal and biomass liquid fuels. 
 
 If the 550 million tons were combined with coal at a 60:40 coal-to-biomass energy ratio, 60 billion gallons of gasoline equivalent could be produced each year, about 45 percent of annual gas usage in the country, the report says. An estimated annual supply of 400 million tons of biomass could be produced sustainably with technologies and practices already available in 2008, the report adds.
 
 But transforming the transportation system from petroleum-based fuels to various domestic sources will take several decades, the report says. In addition, it will be more than a decade before the alternative fuels reach full-market penetration. 
 	
 Using biomass-specifically corn stover, wheat grass, switchgrass, native prairie plants, Miscanthus and woody biomass-with coal unites the best of both worlds by providing the environmental benefits of biomass and the lower cost of coal, according to the report. Both are abundant in the U.S., making them excellent candidates for nonoil-based liquid fuels. The technology is not available in the U.S., but demonstration plants are in operation in Europe. Without storage of carbon dioxide, life-time greenhouse gas emissions from coal-based fuel are about twice that of oil, but with storage it could be about the same.
 
 If safe and viable geologic carbon dioxide storage is developed at commercial-scale facilities by 2015, the first combination plants could be built in the U.S. by 2020, the report states. By 2035, the country could produce 2.5 million barrels of gasoline equivalent per day, assuming a 20 percent growth rate in construction, it says. 
 	
 The research team developed several recommendations from its findings involving collaboration among the U.S. departments of energy and agriculture, researchers and the biofuels industry to identify challenges, market penetration rates, carbon storage issues, conversion technologies, research and development needs, and spatial distribution of biomass in the country.
 
 "The panel strongly felt that we should be trying to achieve a diversified portfolio of technologies," Tilman said. "If we're looking at how we can maximize fuel supply that is greenhouse gas friendly, an appropriate mixture [of biomass and coal] is probably the optimal mix for the country."

US can benefit from coal, biomass fuels

Posted May 21, 2009, at 9:48 a.m. CST
 
 Corncobs are both economical and environmentally friendly as a feedstock for cellulosic ethanol, university and government reports indicate, reaffirming Poet LLC's strategy for commercializing its new technology. 
 
 Removing corncobs from fields for use in cellulosic ethanol production appears to have no substantial impact on soil nutrient content, based on results from the first year of a multi-year study by Iowa State University. 
 
 Poet's process for producing cellulosic ethanol uses corncobs as the feedstock. Poet's pilot-scale plant in Scotland, S.D., is already producing cellulosic ethanol at a rate of approximately 20,000 gallons per year, and plans are on schedule for 25 MMgy of commercial production in Emmetsburg, Iowa, in 2011. 
 
 The ISU research was funded by Poet as part of the company's ongoing internal study into the sustainability of using corncobs as a cellulosic feedstock. 
 
 Results from the first year of the study, conducted on a test field near the Emmetsburg site, indicate that fertilizer treatment for a field in which cobs have been removed would be almost identical to treatment of a field in which cobs were not removed. ISU researchers will continue their work this year on the test plots, compiling more data to help farmers manage their land well while taking advantage of an additional revenue source from their fields. 
 
 "This information reinforces previous research showing that corncobs are a sustainable, environmentally friendly feedstock for producing cellulosic ethanol, and removing them from the field will not alter soil quality," said Scott Weishaar, Poet vice president of commercial development. "We are committed to thoroughly evaluating our process to ensure the benefits of cellulosic ethanol are fully realized." 
 
 Previous research by USDA showed that cobs contain only 2 percent to 3 percent of the measured nutrients of the above-ground corn plant. The collaboration between Poet and ISU takes a closer look at data regarding soil quality and nutrient levels, the impact of cob and stover removal on future plant growth and recommended levels of fertilizer applications, if any, for cob or stover removal. In addition, Poet is investigating the impact of cob piles on future plant growth on the pile site. 
 
 Additionally, the Draft Regulatory Impact Analysis released this month by the U.S. EPA touts the economic benefit of using corn stover, which includes corncobs, in making cellulosic ethanol. 
 
 "… corn stover was chosen as the most economical agricultural feedstock to be used to produce ethanol in order to meet the 16 [billion gallon] EISA (Energy Independence & Security Act) cellulosic biofuel requirement. We estimate that by 2022 greater than 400 million tons of corn stover could be produced. Approximately 82 million tons would be needed to produce 7.8 billion gallons of cellulosic biofuel that our modeling projects to come from corn stover by 2022." (Draft Regulatory Impact Analysis: Changes to Renewable Fuel Standard Program, page 17 <a href="http://www.epa.gov/oms/renewablefuels/420d09001.pdf">http://www.epa.gov/oms/renewablefuels/420d09001.pdf</a>) 
 
 To see a documentary about Poet's pilot cellulosic ethanol plant visit <a href="http://www.poet.com/cellulosedocumentary.htm">www.poet.com/cellulosedocumentary.htm</a>. 
 
 SOURCE: POET

Research reinforces economic, environmental benefits of corncobs as ethanol feedstock

Posted June 11, 2009, at 3:58 p.m. CST
 
 Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan today announced projects funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for wood-to-energy and biomass utilization. These 30 projects, funded at $57 million to $49 million for wood-to-energy grants and $8 million for biomass utilization – are located in 14 states, including California. 
 
 "These projects will promote the development of biofuels from wood and help private sector businesses to establish renewable energy infrastructure and accelerate availability in the marketplace," Merrigan said. "Additionally, hazardous fuels reduction projects utilize biomass from forested lands that, when left untreated, increase wildland fire risks to communities and natural resources." 
 
 In keeping with the Obama Administration's interest in innovative sources for energy, these ARRA funds may help to create markets for small diameter wood and low value trees removed during forest restoration activities. This work will result in increased value of biomass generated during forest restoration projects, the removal of economic barriers to using small diameter trees and woody biomass, and generation of renewable energy from woody biomass. These funds may also help communities and entrepreneurs turn residues from forest restoration activities into marketable energy products. Projects were nominated by Forest Service regional offices and selected nationally through a competitive basis on objective criteria. 
 
 Biomass utilization also provides additional opportunities for removal of hazardous fuels on Federal forests and grasslands and on lands owned by State, local governments, private organizations, and individual landowners. 
 
 A listing of the state-by-state breakdown of the wood-to-energy and biomass utilization projects can be found below. For information about specific projects please call the Forest Service or go to <a href="http://fs.usda.gov">http://fs.usda.gov</a>. 
 
 Wildland Fire Management - Biomass and Wood-to-Energy Projects by State 
 
 Biomass Projects 
 
 State Number of Projects Estimated Amount Accomplish ($1,000) 
 Arizona: 2 projects, $500.00 
 Idaho: 2 projects, $6,500.00 
 Oregon: 2 projects, $750.00 
 Washington: 1 project, $250.00 
 TOTAL: seven projects, $8,000.00 
 
 Wood to Energy Projects 
 
 State Number of Projects Estimated Amount to Accomplish ($1,000) 
 Arizona: 1 project, $1,400.00 
 California: 2 projects, $4,748.00 
 Colorado: 4 projects, $1,000.00 
 Idaho: 2 projects, $3,250.00 
 Kentucky: 2 projects, $2,000.00 
 Maine: 1 project, $1,1424.00 
 Minnesota: 1 project, $250.00 
 Missouri: 1 project, $6,000.00 
 North Dakota: 1 project, $237.00 
 New Mexico: 1 project, $2,500.00 
 Nevada: 1 project, $620.00 
 Oregon: 4 projects, $1,1100.00 
 Pennsylvania: 1 project, $400.00 
 Washington: 1 project, $4,000.00 
 TOTAL: 23 projects, $48,929.00 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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USDA announces economic recovery projects for woody biomass

Posted May 21, 2009 at 10:10 a.m. CST 
 
 The Canadian government has officially launched the Clean Energy Fund, a $1 billion initiative aimed at developing the advancement of clean energy technologies in Canada. 
 
 "By investing in the Clean Energy Fund, our government is encouraging new technologies now to help protect and preserve our environment for future generations," said Lisa Raitt, minister of natural resources. "Not only will this funding protect our long-term energy security, but this additional stimulus creates high-quality jobs for Canadians at a time when they're most needed." 
 
 The fund invests $850 million over five years in technology development and demonstration, $650 million of which is allotted to large-scale carbon capture and storage projects and $200 million to small-scale renewable energy technology projects. 
 
 The investment also includes a $150 million research component, funding initiatives ranging from basic research to pre-demonstration pilot projects for next generation technologies, clean energy systems and other technologies that address environmental challenges such as the Alberta oil sands. 
 
 In addition to advancing key clean energy technologies in Canada, investments through the Clean Energy Fund will also support Canada's work with the United States in building a cleaner energy economy for North America through the Canada–U.S. Clean Energy Dialogue. 
 
 The government recently issued an initial request for proposals for the small-scale demonstration component of the program. Proposals that accelerate the deployment of renewable and clean energy systems in both the power and thermal supply systems are encouraged. Innovative biomass or waste biomass and biogas projects used to generate power and/or heat, or replace fossil fuels in industrial processes are examples of projects that are eligible for funding however, biomass conversion to liquid fuels are excluded. 
 
 Interested applicants can complete and submit an Intent to Submit Project Proposal form at <a href="http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/eneene/science/ceffep/intent-eng.php">http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/eneene/science/ceffep/intent-eng.php</a>. Proposals will be accepted until Sept. 14, 2009. 
 
 SOURCE: BIOENERGY CANADA

Canadian government launches Clean Energy Fund

Posted May 21, 2009 at 10:17 a.m. CST 
 
 Next-generation renewable fuels will have a crucial role to play in transitioning Canada to the new biobased economy. Sustainable Development Technology Canada, with $500 million provided by the government of Canada, is working to bring these promising technologies to market. SDTC is issuing its annual call for applications under the $500 million NextGen Biofuels Fund, which supports the establishment of first-of-kind large demonstration-scale facilities for the production of next-generation renewable fuels. 
 
 "Canada can be a leader in bringing next-generation renewable fuels to market," said SDTC President and CEO Vicky Sharpe. "We have the biomass, we are developing the technologies, and we have the NextGen Biofuels Fund to help reduce the risk so that technologies can move forward to full commercialization." 
 
 The NextGen Biofuels Fund will support up to 40 percent of eligible project costs. The contribution will be repayable based on free cash flow over a period of 10 years after project completion. 
 
 The fund is open for applications all year-round. To be eligible, a project must: be a First-of-Kind facility that primarily produces a next-generation renewable fuel at large demonstration-scale; be located in Canada; use feedstocks that are or could be representative of Canadian biomass; and have demonstrated its technology at pre-commercial scale. 
 
 Next-generation biofuels are derived from nontraditional renewable feedstocks, such as municipal waste, agricultural and forest residues, and perennial crops on marginal land, and are produced through the use of novel conversion technologies. 
 
 Detailed information on the NextGen Biofuels Fund and on how to apply is available in the funding section of the SDTC Web site at <a href="http://www.sdtc.ca">www.sdtc.ca</a>. Prior to submitting an application for funding, candidates should communicate their intent to SDTC by sending an email to nextgenapplications@sdtc.ca. 
 
 SOURCE: SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT TECHNOLOGY CANADA

Next-generation renewable fuels essential to the biobased economy

Posted May 21, 2009, at 1:30 p.m. CST
 
 Waste Management Inc. and InEnTec LLC today announced the formation of S4 Energy Solutions LLC, a joint venture to develop, operate and market plasma gasification facilities using InEnTec's Plasma Enhanced Melter technology. The joint venture is expected to process waste from the country's increasingly segmented commercial and industrial waste streams to produce a range of renewable energy and environmentally beneficial fuels and industrial products as well as to generate electricity. 
 
 S4 Energy Solutions' initial focus will be to process medical and other segregated commercial and industrial waste streams. The company's future commercialization plans may also include the processing of municipal solid waste once the technology has been demonstrated to be economical and scalable for such use. 
 
 "We see waste as a resource to be recovered, and this joint venture with the PEM system will help Waste Management's commercial and industrial customers maximize high energy value waste streams to generate valuable renewable energy products based on their unique environmental and logistical considerations," said Joe Vaillancourt, managing director at Waste Management. "With InEnTec, Waste Management has found a partner with a promising technology as well as strong management, research and development capabilities to address the hurdles to implementing a new technology." 
 
 With the PEM process, waste materials are fed into a closed chamber where they are superheated to temperatures of between 10,000 and 20,000 degrees Fahrenheit using an electricity-conducting gas called plasma. The intense heat of the PEM rearranges the molecular structure of the waste, transforming organic (carbon-based) materials into an ultra-clean, synthesis gas (syngas). The clean syngas could be converted to transportation fuels such as ethanol and diesel, industrial products like hydrogen and methanol or used as a substitute for natural gas for heating or electricity generation. In a secondary stage of the PEM process, inorganic (noncarbon-based) materials are transformed into environmentally beneficial products. 
 
 "Our PEM systems are the leading technology for commercial plasma gasification, and Waste Management will provide much of the process knowledge that will help make our joint venture successful," said Jeff Surma, president and chief executive officer of S4 Energy Solutions. "The PEM technology has demonstrated its ability to process a number of waste streams, and we are looking forward to developing more projects that sustainably manage waste while recovering valuable energy and resources."
 
 The joint venture, combining Waste Management's industry leadership and expertise in the collection and management of a wide range of segmented commercial and industrial waste streams with InEnTec's PEM technology could produce a variety of environmentally beneficial end products, which will be key to the advancement, commercial development, and scalability of the PEM technology. It is also complementary to Waste Management's comprehensive waste services in the areas of recycling, landfill, and waste-to-energy and consulting services capabilities.
 
 Together with Waste Management's other renewable energy initiatives, this joint venture will move Waste Management toward meeting two of its sustainability goals, doubling its renewable energy production to provide enough power for the equivalent of 2 million homes by 2020, and investing in emerging technologies for managing waste. 
 
 For more information about S4 Energy Solutions and the PEM process, visit <a href="http://www.S4EnergySolutions.com">www.S4EnergySolutions.com</a>.
 
 SOURCE: WASTE MANAGEMENT, INENTEC

Waste Management, InEnTec form joint venture to develop, operate plasma gasification facilities

Posted June 1, 2009, at 4:30 p.m. CST
 
 Vermont has become the first U.S. state to adapt a full system of renewable energy feed-in tariffs, a program that closely resembles Ontario's Green Energy Act (<a href="http://www.greenenergyact.ca">www.greenenergyact.ca</a>) passed into law in mid-May. Several U.S. states are considering similar legislation. 
 
 Vermont Gov. James Douglas allowed H.446, An Act Relating to Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, to become law without his signature on May 27. The new legislation puts in place a "standard offer" that will establish minimum rates to be paid by electric customers for various renewable sources in long-term fixed-price contacts. 
 
 In a letter summarizing his concerns with the bill, Douglas said although he supports the development of renewable energy within the state, he believes the bill "fails to recognize the current viability of renewable energy in a competitive setting and will needlessly increase costs to Vermont consumer so as to subsidize this one favored business sector."
 
 Rather than vetoing the bill, Douglas allowed its passage without his signature because the Vermont Public Service Board is required to revisit the set rates within the next four months and periodically thereafter to determine whether the prices are inadequate or excessive. 
 
 Currently, the statute grants methane from a landfill or agriculture operation 12 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) for facilities up to 2.2 megawatts, 20 cents per kWh for wind power facilities up to 15 kilowatts, and 30 cents per kWh for solar power facilities up to 2.2 megawatts.
 
 The Vermont PSB has until Sept. 15 to open and complete a noncontested case docket to determine whether the standard offer prices constitute a reasonable approximation of the prices required to meet the bill's criteria. If the PSB decides to establish new prices, it has until Jan. 15, 2010, to set prices for standard offers.
 
 To see the bill in its entirety, go to <a href="http://www.revermont.org/documents/H-446_001.pdf">http://www.revermont.org/documents/H-446_001.pdf</a>.
 
 Gov. Douglas recently signed into law H. 152, An Act Relating to Encouraging Biomass Energy Production, which creates a biomass energy development working group to investigate and recommend fiscal and regulatory incentives for biomass energy, as well as guidelines and standards for maintaining forest health, procurement standards and other policy considerations for biomass development within the state.

Vermont first to pass renewable energy feed-in law

Posted May 22, 2009, at 10:08 a.m. CST
 
 Kentucky saw its first biofuel Miscanthus planting last week, a 300-acre field in a nursery that will yield rhizomes for 6,000 acres next year.
 
 Midwestern Biofuels is looking for farmers in a 50-mile radius of South Shore, Ky.,-into Ohio and West Virginia-to grow the crop, which the company will pelletize and sell to biofuel producers. Miscanthus can be planted using the same equipment that's used for tobacco farming, an industry that has shrunk in Kentucky, according to Jeff Lowe, president and co-owner of Midwestern Biofuels. "Who better to plant it than the tobacco farmer?" he said. "They can use whatever equipment they already have and bring [the miscanthus] to our facility."
 
 Lowe and co-owner Brandon Minix expect the first batch of the waterproof pellets to be ready in June. The project has been funded privately, but discussions with other potential investors are in the works, Lowe said. Midwestern Biofuels was established about nine months ago.
 
 The company will begin producing about 3,000 pellets per month, Lowe said, working up to 6,000 per month by 2010 and upwards of 10,000 by the end of 2010. "It'll probably be one of the largest biomass producers in the country," he said. By 2011, the company plan to be operating on 40,000 acres, he added. Midwestern Biofuels will pay the farmers an established rate per acre and buy their yields.
 
 The company also will experiment with growing switchgrass, black locus and willow trees for biomass. Crops will be planted on land previously mined for coal, beginning the last week in May, Lowe said. "We're moving pretty fast." 
 
 Lowe worked in the coal industry for more than 20 years and wanted to develop biomass that can be burned with coal without having to retrofit producers' facilities, he said. "When I saw what biomas will mean for the future, I wanted it to be handled like coal," he said. "It's been enjoyable coming to the green side." 
 
 Researchers from the University of Kentucky have been instrumental in the process, Lowe said. At full operation, the project will generate about 200 to 300 jobs, including farmers, truckers and plant operators, Lowe said. 
 
 Miscanthus is harvested every year in January, allowing for a freeze. It grows in poor soil, requires almost no fertilizer and is viable for at least 20 years. Biofuel from miscanthus has a heat yield of 8,000 Britsh thermal units per pound.

Miscanthus for biofuels sprouts up in Kentucky

Posted May 22, 2009, at 11:55 a.m. CST
 
 Microbes may be a big player in the development of renewable fuels from cellulosic materials, researchers say, and experiments are being conducted into how they can be used to convert sugars to ethanol and mixed-generation fuels. The topic was discussed at the recent general meeting of the American Society for Microbiology.
 
 Manufacturing ethanol from corn competes with food crops and has been accused of being responsible for rising food prices, according to the ASM. "The value of using nonfood crops is it will mitigate the significant food-versus-fuel debate," said Tim Donohue, professor of bacteriology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and director of the U.S. DOE's Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center.
 
 Researchers are looking at alternative biomass as feedstocks for microorganisms to ferment into ethanol, and the research has demonstrated the concept does work, Donohue said. The most attractive is lignocellulosic biomass-wood residues, municipal paper waste, energy crops, or nonedible parts of corn such as cobs, stalks and stover. 
 
 "The same microbial activities used to generate ethanol from starch today can be used to generate ethanol and next-generation fuels from cellulosic feedstocks in the future," Donohue said. 
 
 The challenge, though, is unlocking the sugars from the cellulosic biomass. Martin Keller, DOE Bioenergy Research Center director, and his team at Oak Ridge National Laboratory use an adapted method of high-throughput screening, a practice used in the pharmaceutical industry, to rapidly test poplar tree samples for their ability to give up sugars. Some are more likely to release their sugars than others, which Keller says could be because of genetics, environmental factors, or a combination of both. The team is growing poplar saplings in controlled environments to learn more about it, he said. The team chose poplars because they grow quickly and in many different areas, Keller said, adding that his team also is experimenting with switchgrass.
 
 Breaking down cellulosic biomass is an expensive process, but once that glitch is overcome, several companies are ready to move forward with production, according to ASM.
 
 Keller's team also is studying Anaerocellum, a bacterium found in a hot spring in Yellowstone. The bacterium grows at 80 degrees Celsius (176 degrees Fahrenheit) and can not only break down the cellulosic biomass to sugars, but it also can ferment it into acetate and ethanol, according to ASM. "This is called consolidated bioprocessing," Keller said. "This is only one strain that can do this, but none of the strains we have so far is perfect. You still need to optimize the strain. For instance, our strain is producing more acetate than ethanol." 
 
 Besides ethanol and biodiesel, researchers also are looking at producing hydrogen from renewable resources. Donohue and his lab are working with purple bacteria called Rhodobacter sphaerides that use photosynthesis to produce hydrogen. The hydrogen can then be converted to electricity using fuel cells the lab is developing. "On a laboratory scale, we can use sunlight and renewable waste to generate electricity in microbial reactors," Donohue said. Patents are pending and Donohue said the team does not have industrial-scale capacity for the project.
 
 The most exciting part of current studies at the DOE energy research centers is the wide variety of disciplines represented by the researchers, Keller said, from molecular experts to chemists and engineers. "This has never existed before, bringing everyone together to target the problems we want to solve," he said. Collaborative research has been tremendously progressive at the centers in the past year and a half, Keller said, and he sees it improving. "This will explode even more in the next couple years," he said.

Research: Microbes are an option for ethanol, other biofuels

Posted May 26, 2009, at 10:46 a.m. CST 
 
 From beer and soda makers to fruit growers, Dallas-based Allard Research and Development LLC has designed ethanol production systems that provide "mini-refinery" capabilities to business, municipalities, farms and ranches, as well as commercial markets. 
 
 "The machines are really for commercial and industrial use. It's definitely not something for the end user at the home level," said Allan Allard, president of Allard Research and Development, which focuses primarily on ethanol production, automation, hydroponics and aquaponics and the intersection of the systems. "We've had a lot of interest from colleges that want to actually build teaching programs around green fuels in their chemistry departments all the way to municipalities that are interested in generating ethanol for city vehicles and police cars." 
 
 Primarily a research and development facility, the company is designing and developing new technologies for small- to medium-scale ethanol production, closed-loop food and fuel production, green alternatives, self-sufficiency, and sustainable systems. Allard Research and Development is offering two families of Ethanol Production Systems – a fully automated (EFS) and a manual (MES) process technology. The automated Ethanol Fuel Systems are state-of-the-art mini-refineries that produce ethanol in a compact machine, Allard said. The systems are computer touch-screen-controlled and feature a UNIX-based operating system on the primary automation computer, an Apple Inc. Mac Mini for reliability. Using commercial-grade stainless steel tanks, valves, pipes, fittings, and a stainless steel distillation column, the EFS machines were designed for industrial-type use. 
 
 The EFS and MES machines are offered in 100, 200, 500 and 1000 product models that represent output gallons per day capacities. Machines with larger output capacities can be custom engineered and manufactured at the company's Dallas facility. The company financed its own research and development to produce the systems, which were originally designed for companies to use in producing their own fleet fuel. 
 
 The production systems are small enough to fit inside a shipping container box. For example, the 200-gallon-per-day system is about 50 square feet, measuring 5 feet wide by 9 feet long and about 9 feet tall. The 200-gallon EFS system costs approximately $70,000, according to Allard. 
 
 Allard said there is significant industrial waste, such as soft drink bottlers who must dispose of leftover syrup not used before the expiration date. "Traditionally what they'll do is basically pay people to dispose of it in a landfill. So this is an ideal feedstock because it's basically a sugar-water solution already and so you just ferment it and turn it into ethanol," he adds. The paper industry has a similar slurry, called black liquor, that's a byproduct of making paper and paper products. 
 
 Fruit growers, such as apple orchards, could also benefit from such a system, Allard said. There's a fairly large amount of waste in fruit products, for example, apples that have a blemish are left on the tree, some fall on the ground or get bugs in them – those wasted fruits could be crushed, fermented and made into ethanol. 
 
 "The low hanging fruit literally for us is all of these waste products, because there are a lot of companies that deal with something that can easily be converted," he said. 
 
 The company is designing a line of front-end processors that are designed and built for a specific type of feedstock. "If you grow fruits, there's one machine that we're designing – a fruit pre-processor – that is literally just a big bin on one end that you can dump apples or grapes or whatever you have in there and it crushes it, presses it, extracts the juice and then prepares that for fermentation. The industrial waste type feedstock, like the soft drinks, don't need any prep, they can be fermented as is." 
 
 Allard says the company doesn't plan to enter the biorefinery market; rather, they are content being in the middle market. "We're like Apple Computer was in 1978, and what you have in this market today is moonshiners on one end of the spectrum and refineries on the other," he said. "Nobody was in this market size space that we're in – under several hundred thousand dollars, maybe a million for the smallest of the available ethanol plants today – so we're kind of like Apple was in 1978 where there were hobbyists on one end and IBM mainframes on the other. But we invented the PC of this industry. Where it goes or how it can be used is really only limited by what people can come up with for how they can get feedstocks and what they can do with them." 
 
 Allard said the company has received information requests from Australia, New Zealand, Asia Pacific to Europe, Africa, South America and the U.S. 
 
 SOURCE: ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE

Texas company offers ethanol mini-refineries

Posted May 26, 2009, at 10:53 a.m. CST
 
 The Global Biorenewables Research Society (GBR Society) was launched May 20 by scientists from eight countries, aiming to become the independent standard for science-based knowledge for sustainable biorenewables. "This effort will be of great value to policymakers who will be facing a world transitioning from nonsustainable technologies to biobased economies," said the chair of the new society Luuk van der Wielen from Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands. Manuel Heitor, Portugal's Secretary of State for Science, Technology and Higher Education, stressed that governments as well as the international debate, would greatly benefit from the input of sound scientific knowledge provided by the GBR Society. 
 
 The founding members are international research leaders from diverse disciplines including agriculture, biology, economics and engineering. They will provide scientific assessments on environmental, social and economic challenges that increasing demand for biomass will bring. Importantly, the society will explore opportunities for rural development, better management of agriculture, and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Priorities also include enhancing interactive communication between scientists, policymakers and the general public, as well as facilitating an educational network for international exchange of students and scientific staff. The GBR Society will be feeding into this year's United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. 
 
 "Our ecosystems are under pressure by increasing demands for food, feed, fiber and fuel," Van der Wielen said. "Implementation of a biobased economy will significantly impact our society, as the increasing demand for biomass requires sustainable production, responsible use and equitable sharing of the resources and products. Energy security and climate change mitigation, rural development, sustainable land use will depend upon rigorous debate supported by the best available fact-based information." 
 
 The GBR Society is the outgrowth of two roundtable discussions held in the U.S. last year. Scientists in the discussions were proposing to form a group that would function much like the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change whose comments on climate change are considered authoritative, partly because of the breadth and inclusiveness of the scientists involved in the process. 
 
 The founding partners of the GBR Society are scientists from the following leading international biorenewable centers: B-Basic (Netherlands), Energy Biosciences Institute (USA), Kluyver Centre (Netherlands), Institute for Biotechnology and Bioengineering (Portugal), Institute of Advanced Studies of the University of São Paulo (Brazil), University of Queensland (Australia), Porter Alliance (United Kingdom), University of Cambridge (United Kingdom), Copernicus Institute of Utrecht University (Netherlands), Catholic University of Valparaíso (Chile), Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur (India) and University of York (United Kingdom). Membership will be open to other scientists from public research institutes.
 
 SOURCE: BIODIESEL MAGAZINE

Scientific society forms to inform policy debate

Posted May 27, 2009, at 10:04 a.m. CST
 
 The U.S. Department of Interior recently announced it will invest $15 million under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to fund 55 projects in 12 states that will reduce hazardous fuels on federal land, in order to protect at-risk communities from wild land fires, support local economies and rehabilitate ecosystems damaged by wildfires. 
 
 The final selection criteria ensured project planning and environmental compliance work was complete or substantially complete and that projects have the potential to provide additional economic benefits to support local or regional employment through post-treatment use of biomass in wood products or power generation.
 California received the most funding at $3.3 million, followed by Montana with $2 million and Arizona at $1.3 million. 
 
 To view a complete listing of projects and awards by state, visit <a href="http://recovery.doi.gov/press/bureaus/office-of-wildland-fire/">http://recovery.doi.gov/press/bureaus/office-of-wildland-fire/</a>.

Interior Department invests in biomass projects

Posted May 27, 2009, at 11:13 a.m. CST
 
 A proposed biomass power plant near Hanceville, British Columbia, Canada, will run on trees killed by mountain pine beetles, if the plan is selected as a project for Phase II of BC Hydro's Bioenergy Call for Power.
 
 Plans for the $260 million 60-megawatt plant in the Cariboo Chilcotin were developed through a partnership between Western Biomass Power Corp. and Tsilhqot'in National Government. It is one of many proposals vying for a place in the Bioenergy Call for Power, a program to provide British Columbia with clean energy and diversify rural economies. Phase II includes a two-stream process, the first targeting larger-scale biomass projects and the second focusing on smaller-scale, community-level biomass energy solutions, according to BC Hydro. Phase I, conducted in 2008, included projects that were immediately viable and resulted in four electricity purchase agreements that were filed with the British Columbia Utilities Commission in February. The program will help the province reach its goal of becoming electrically self-sufficient by 2016.
 
 The region has experienced a mountain pine beetle epidemic and local businessmen responded by establishing Western Biomass to utilize the dead wood. Piles of dead wood left behind by forest licensees are burned under current practices, releasing particulates into the air. "There are literally mountains of these trees," said Jeff Paquin, manager of business development for the company. "We're addressing that by using waste wood to create energy. The objective from day one was to do something useful with this otherwise useless wood." The company was turned over to Run of River Power Inc. in August 2007. 
 
 Costs of building the plant and annual operation (estimated at about $55 million) may be less than expected, as service provider costs are coming down, Paquin said. The facility would create about 167 full-time jobs and another 89 permanent jobs in areas including harvesting, transportation and planning, he said. The plant will work with local traditional saw log licensees to procure the biomass, thereby improving the economics of the industry. "It's important that we work together with existing industries," he said. 
 
 Paquin said the project has several environmental, social and economic benefits. It's an opportunity to create employment in an area that has a high unemployment rate and attracts capital to the area. It also would help drive pride, leadership and self-determination in young First Nations people as the region strives for independence from government funding and toward self-sufficiency. Environmentally, the project helps clear the dead trees that would otherwise cause problems with soil erosion, habitat and the growth of other plants such as mushrooms.
 
 Proposals for both streams of the Bioenergy Call for Power, which must meet certain standards, are to be turned into BC Hydro by the fall of this year. The company says it will make its selections early next year. The goal of the larger-scale projects is to acquire 1,000 gigawatt hours of energy, according to the company. It also will choose at least two community-based projects.
 
 The project proposal has plenty of support from groups such as the Cariboo Regional District, the Williams Lake & District Chamber of Commerce, First Nations people and most recently, a verbal approval from the Hanceville City Council. The council will meet again next week and Paquin hopes for documented approval. "We have support from all levels," he said. "It just strengthens our position with the other competitors."
 
 An in-depth study showed the current supply of roadside residual and dead trees will last for 25 years, after which time Western Biomass will harvest its own crop of trees, to be planted in about seven years, Paquin said.

BC plant to use trees killed by pine beetles

Posted June 2, 2009, at 12:26 p.m. CST
 
 Sanford, Fla., will be the first municipality in the country to convert wastewater sludge to energy using MaxWest Environmental Systems Inc. gasification technology. The resulting syngas will be used to power the city's sludge dryer at the South Water Resources Center.
 
 The city is leasing the equipment over the next 20 years from MaxWest, which will operate the system, and expects to save about $9 million on natural gas alone during that time. "That's the beauty of this project," said Charlie Turner, Sanford utility plant manager. "We didn't buy this. It's going to be a lot easier for us." The payments are about the same as the cost of purchasing natural gas, he added. Savings could amount to much more, as the city plans to look into using other feedstocks for the gasifier in the future, and possibly to produce electricity. "That would be very exciting," Turner said. "Who knows how much we could save."
 
 Turner hopes the gasifier will be up and running in the next week. "We are just completing construction," he said. "We haven't actually run the unit except to test." The gasifier will consume about 30 to 40 cubic yards of biosolids-the end product of a sewer plant-per day to start with, working toward more. The facility will run 24 hours a day, producing 7 million British thermal units of renewable thermal energy per hour, according to MaxWest. Turner hopes other cities in the region eventually will contribute their wastewater sludge and other waste materials once the project expands. 
 
 MaxWest's gasification technology takes biosolids and feeds it into an enclosed primary gasifier to produce syngas. In a continuous integrating process, the syngas is oxidized in an enclosed thermal oxidizer to produce renewable thermal energy. 
 
 Besides saving the city money, the technology will be beneficial in disposing of dried residuals, which has been met with opposition from the public. Community members seem to be embracing the new process, Turner said. While Sanford is the first to commit to the gasifier, MaxWest is in discussions with other municipalities and industries in the U.S. and Canada, according to the company. The Sanford site will be a showcase for the technology, demonstrating is effectiveness, MaxWest says.
 "We've got big hopes," Turner said. "We want it to be successful."

Florida city to use sludge-to-energy gasifier

Posted June 4, 2009, at 2:52 p.m. CST
 
 Biomass gasification system provider Nexterra Energy Corp. announced its system installed at Dockside Green on the inner harbor at Victoria, British Columbia, is now operational and able to provide heat and hot water for up to 2,500 Dockside Green residents. 
 
 Nexterra announced its involvement with Dockside Green in March 2007, which is a $600 million residential and commercial development located on 15 acres of former industrial land. Residential phases are complete, and commercial buildings are currently being constructed. 
 
 Nexterra's system uses a thermochemical gasification process to create a synthetic gas which is burned to produce heat. Wood materials, water and air are heated in a low-oxygen environment until the wood undergoes gaseous decomposition. The resulting flue gas products are scrubbed and cleaned through an electrostatic precipitator, and then burned to produce heat for a water boiler. The boiler will supply the majority of Dockside heating requirements with some peak load supplied by the backup/peaking gas boilers.
 
 The Dockside gasification system, fueled by clean, locally sourced urban wood residue, requires two to three 20-ton truckloads of wood waste per week, or approximately 150 trucks per year to deliver an annual total of 3,000 tons of wood waste, according to Nexterra Energy Director of Marketing Charlie Ker. 
 
 "The trucks are traveling 20 kilometers from the wood source, which is being supplied by Alpine Waste Recycling," Kerr said. "Arrangements have also been made with Alpine to collect the mineral-rich ash residue-100 tons per year-from the biomass plant and use it in their compost recycling. So, the entire process at the plant involves recycled materials from the wood waste used as fuel to the residual ash used in compost soil material." 
 
 The gasification system at Dockside Green is owned by Dockside Green LLP, a micro-energy utility that was created by Terasen Energy Services, Vancity Capital, Corix Group of Companies and Windmill West Developments.
 
 Dockside Green has achieved LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Platinum level certification in the category of new construction with 63 points out of a possible 70. The LEED Green Building Rating System is a voluntary, consensus-based certification program for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings. Learn more about the LEED program here at <a href="http://www.biodieselmagazine.com/article.jsp?article_id=3475">http://www.biodieselmagazine.com/article.jsp?article_id=3475</a>.

Nexterra, Dockside Green fire-up biomass gasifier  

Posted May 27, 2009, at 1:35 p.m. CST 
 
 Worldwide demand for energy is expected to nearly double by 2030 and will be driven largely by developing countries, according to the Energy Information Administration. The agency's recently released annual International Energy Outlook reported that while short-term energy demand is dampened due to economic recession, long-term consumption is expected to return to levels anticipated prior to the recession. 
 
 Linda Doman, international energy analyst at the EIA, said that developing areas including China, India and the Middle East will outpace developed nations in the demand for energy and will drive oil prices to high levels. Consumption increases in developing countries are projected to grow 73 percent by 2030 as compared to a 15 percent growth in already-developed countries. 
 
 According to the report, demand for liquid fuels will gradually diminish with the exception of the transportation sector. There, liquids will be relatively unaffected by projected high world oil prices and will continue to serve as the primary energy source. Because of the projected high oil prices, ethanol and biodiesel are predicted to play greater roles in supplying alternative liquid fuels to the world market. According to the report, "Particularly strong growth in biofuels consumption is projected for the United States, where production of biofuels increases from 0.3 million barrels per day in 2006 to 1.9 million barrels per day in 2030." 
 
 Developed areas in Europe and developing areas in Asia, Central America and South America will also experience noticeable growth in the production of biofuels by 2030. Those areas, combined with the United States, will account for 75 percent of the world increase in biofuels production by 2030. 
 
 SOURCE: ETHANOl PRODUCER MAGAZINE

EIA: Energy demand, biofuels use expected to grow

Posted May 27, 2009, at 1:40 p.m. CST
 
 Finland's Neste Oil held the official groundbreaking ceremony on Tuesday for a $940 million renewable diesel plant in Rotterdam, Netherlands. This facility, with a production capacity of approximately 240 MMgy, will be dedicated to producing the company's proprietary NExBTL fuel. It is slated to be the largest renewable fuels plant in Europe. 
 
 "We expect mechanical completion to take place sometime in early 2011," said Hanna Maula, director of corporate communications for Neste. "It will take additional time after this to ramp up production to full capacity." 
 
 A facility of this size is certain to increase the strain on the already sketchy feedstock supply situation in Europe, which is importing palm and soy oil for biodiesel refining. Some nongovernmental (NGO) associations such as Greenpeace and the World Wildlife Fund have protested the use of palm oil for biodiesel refining, saying that it is responsible for the deforestation of tropical areas in Indonesia and Malaysia. "Some NGOs do not support the use of palm oil in any capacity," Maula said. "But we do everything we can to ensure the sustainability of the palm oil we use to make renewable diesel." 
 
 Neste said it does understand that there are good players and bad players in the palm farming and production sector. "We can't be responsible for the actions of the bad players," Maula said. "But we try to trace our palm oil from the refinery back to the farm to make sure that it is produced in a sustainable way." 
 
 Neste Oil has also committed itself to only using palm oil certified by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil as it becomes available in sufficient volumes. In addition, most of Neste Oil's research spending, with an annual budget of nearly $37 million, is used in developing new renewable raw materials. 
 
 The Port of Rotterdam is an excellent location for a fuel refinery, located in central Europe, and where most shipments of virgin oils exported to Europe are destined. "Rotterdam is a very good location for us," Maula said. "It allows us to access raw material shipments and markets across Europe." 
 
 Neste Oil's refineries are located in Porvoo and Naantali, Finland, and have a combined crude oil refining capacity of about 260,000 barrels a day. The company had net sales of €15 billion in 2008 and employs about 5,200 people.
 
 SOURCE: BIODIESEL MAGAZINE

Neste starts construction on renewable fuels plant

Posted May 28, 2009, at 11:28 a.m. CST
 
 Nexterra Energy Corp. (<a href="http://www.nexterra.ca">www.nexterra.ca</a>) announced today that it has been selected by the University of Northern British Columbia to supply and install a turnkey biomass gasification system to heat UNBC's Prince George campus and anchor its new Northern Bioenergy Innovation Centre. 
 
 Nexterra's system is part of a $14.8 million bioenergy program that includes upgraded road and utility infrastructure, a new building and a "living laboratory" for bioenergy research and development. The Nexterra gasification system will convert locally sourced wood residue into clean-burning syngas that will displace up to 85 percent of the natural gas currently used to heat the campus. The project, which is jointly funded by the federal and provincial governments, is expected to begin in June 2009. It will be complete by mid-2010 and construction will support approximately 150 jobs. 
 
 By using wood residue to displace natural gas, UNBC will reduce its fossil fuel consumption by 80,000 gigajoules per year, the equivalent of natural gas required to heat more than 700 homes in British Columbia. The new system will also reduce the university's carbon footprint by approximately 3,500 metric tons annually, the equivalent of taking 1,000 cars off the road.
 
 "We are very pleased to partner with Nexterra to implement a project that will help to establish Prince George as a Canadian bioenergy center and UNBC as a model for campus green energy," said Charles Jago, UNBC's interim president. "This project brings us one step closer to achieving our goal of being Canada's green university, and will significantly help UNBC meet its current and future energy needs, while also reducing our carbon footprint and energy costs."
 
 Nexterra's gasification technology is commercially proven for converting wood residue such as bark, branches, and sawdust into renewable synthetic gas or syngas which enables customers to economically self-generate renewable heat and/or power. Syngas is a clean-burning combustible gas that can be used like natural gas to generate heat and/or power. Recent testing at Nexterra's plants in Canada and the U.S. has verified that particulate emissions from those facilities are equivalent to natural gas. The combination of ultra-low emissions, syngas versatility and low cost makes this technology ideally suited to universities in urban environments. 
 
 "We are thrilled to have been chosen for this exciting clean energy showcase," said Jonathan Rhone, president and CEO of Nexterra. "This project reinforces British Columbia's leadership in clean energy innovation and technology. We look forward to working with UNBC, the Province of British Columbia and the federal government to establish UNBC as a northern hub of bioenergy innovation, economic development and job creation."
 
 The project is supported by the federal and provincial governments through its Knowledge Infrastructure Program. The bioenergy project at UNBC also previously attracted $5 million from the Public Sector Energy Conservation Agreement and $3.5 million from the Innovative Clean Energy Fund.
 
 SOURCE: NEXTERRA ENERGY CORP.

UNBC selects Nexterra's biomass gasification technology for renewable energy project

Posted May 28, 2009, at 12:06 p.m. CST
 	
 A new partnership between RISI and the Biomass Thermal Energy Council will allow BTEC members to contribute to RISI's Wood Biomass Market Report, a comprehensive source of market information and wood biomass feedstock pricing in North America. 
 
 BTEC, which focuses on advancing the use of biomass for heat and other thermal energy applications, will form an advisory group of its members to help RISI, an information provider for the global forest products industry, determine what kind of issues should be addressed in the report. "We're not looking to assert any sort of change [in the biomass industry]," said William Perritt, executive editor of the publication. "The purpose of the group is simply to help us understand what the information needs are in the wood pellet and wood energy sectors. We're asking this group to tell us what they need; what they're looking for."
 	
 BTEC's inclusive membership base was an attractive element for the partnership, as it consists of both wood pellet and wood energy producers, Perritt said. "Inclusiveness is the key thing," he added. "And they're in a very positive growth mode right now."
 
 BTEC members will also get a discount on the publication, which features monthly updates on North America and international biomass business development and capital investment, government incentives, regulations and policies, feedstock availability and sustainability, along with other factors affecting markets. "We see this as a good avenue to give responsiveness to the industry," he said of the partnership. "The more input the better."
 
 Discussions on pricing and market trends are strictly banned in the group, Perritt said, as it violates anti-trust laws. "We will adhere to the spirit and letter of the law," he added.
 
 "The partnership may grow in the future, but right now it's largely centered around this report and what BTEC can contribute to it," said Kyle Gibeault, BTEC program coordinator. The report grew from another RISI publication, the International Woodfiber Report, after the company saw an increase in wood biomass interest, Perritt said. The first issue of the Wood Biomass Market Report was published in September. 
 
 To subscribe to the Wood Biomass Market Report, visit <a href="http://www.risiinfo.com/woodbiomass">www.risiinfo.com/woodbiomass</a>.

RISI and BTEC form partnership 

Posted May 28, 2009, at 2:02 p.m. CST
 
 The Canadian government recently announced it would provide a federal repayable contribution of up to $1.6 million for a $6 million waste-to-energy project in Ontario. 
 
 The funds will be distributed through the Agri-Opportunities Program, a $134 million initiative launched in January 2007 and designed to increase market opportunities for the Canadian agriculture industry. The program provides a maximum repayable contribution of $10 million per project and per recipient regardless of the number of projects over the life of the program, which ends in March 2011.
 
 Seacliff Energy Inc. will use the $1.6 million to construct an anaerobic digestion facility which will transform vegetable/food waste from local greenhouses and food processing plants, as well as cattle/swine manure from local farms, into power that will be sold to the Ontario power grid or used to heat the nearby greenhouses. The digestate will be sold as a natural fertilizer.
 
 In the beginning of 2007, Ontario put into place its Standard Offer Program, a feed-in tariff that incentivizes the adoption of renewable energy. Regional or national electric utilities are obligated to buy renewable electricity at above market rates, which are set by the government, to help overcome any cost disadvantages of using renewable energy sources. 
 
 Unlike most digester systems currently in use in Canada, the project will implement a two-stage system to hold up to 40,000 metric tons of waste. Two-stage digestion systems are complex and typically more expensive than single-stage or continuous batch, but offer considerable advantages such as more control of the reactions occurring within the system.
 
 The feedstock mix used at Seacliff Energy will consist of upwards of 50 different types of materials, including cucumbers and cucumber prunings, corn silage and cattle/swine manure. The company plans to collect materials from local food processing plants, five of which are located within 50 kilometers (30 miles) of the facility's location. 
 
 The facility is expected to become operational in the fall of 2009. 
 
 In addition to Seacliff Energy, the Agri-Opportunities Program is providing financial support for an anaerobic digestion project in Ontario. Powerbase Energy Systems Inc., of Carleton Place, Ontario, will receive $480,500 in repayable funding for the development of a facility to manufacture anaerobic digestion systems that process agricultural waste into electrical energy (see "Powerbase Energy to commercialize waste-to-energy technology" at 
 <a href="http://www.biomassmagazine.com/article.jsp?article_id=2626&q=Powerbase">http://www.biomassmagazine.com/article.jsp?article_id=2626&q=Powerbase</a>).

Canada contributes to anaerobic digestion project

Posted May 28, 2009, at 2:30 p.m. CST
 
 Australia-based agriculture technology company Glenvar has developed a direct baling system which it said could be beneficial to the biomass and cellulosic ethanol industries.
 
 The Glenvar Bale Direct System combines a conventional baler and a conventional combine, enabling grain growers to harvest and bale simultaneously. The combine tows the baler using a drawbar attached to the main drive axle. Residue exiting the rear of the combine is directed onto a conveyor and then fed into the baler, which is driven by a hydraulic motor powered from an independent hydraulic pump mounted on the combine. 
 
 The driver of the baler is able to obtain a sufficient view of the baling operation through the use of a mounted video camera which streams to a screen in the cabin. 
 
 Glenvar owner Graham Shields and managers Mike Shields and Kelly Shields have been developing and improving the baling system in Western Australia over the past seven years, according to Alan VanNahmen, product development manager. VanNahmen said he has had some involvement in the testing and marketing in the U.S. "Our tests have proven that the combination of a combine with large square baler can improve cellulosic biomass collection and improve material handling efficiencies," he said.
 
 Comparisons have shown an extra 30 percent, up to 300 percent, more residue collected compared to windrowing and baling as separate operations, according to the company. 
 
 The system has been designed to be compatible with a wide range of combines and balers, and is priced at approximately $80,000 per unit. 
 
 In collaboration with Glenvar, Strauff Fiber LLC in Dayton, Wash., tested a Glenvar Bale Direct System during the 2008 wheat harvest. To view Strauff Fiber's video of the Glenvar Bale Direct System in use, click here. (<a href="http://strauff-fiber.com/ComBaler.aspx ">http://strauff-fiber.com/ComBaler.aspx </a>) 
 
 VanNahmen said Glenvar and its distributor are working to build additional units for other U.S. biomass collection entities.

Direct baling system may benefit biomass industry

Posted June 1, 2009, at 10:48 a.m. CST
 
 A new process for dissolving wood to separate cellulose-rich material and pure lignin uses ionic liquid and mild temperature and pressure conditions.
 
 Researchers Hector Rodriguez and Robin Rogers from the Queen's University, Belfast, UK, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering discovered the method, with the help of researchers from the University of Alabama-Tuscaloosa. It's more eco-friendly than the currently used Kraft pulping process, which originated in the 19th century and uses toxic chemicals. Cellulose can be used in biofuels, paper and textiles, and lignin is useful in developing other chemicals mainly obtained from petroleum-based resources. But developing alternative, environmentally friendly ways to separate them from the wood has posed a challenge.
 	
 "With the process that we propose, based in direct dissolution in ionic liquid, the use of noxious substances and generation of toxic waste is minimized," Rodriguez told Biomass Magazine. "Moreover, it pursues an integral recovery of the different biopolymers of wood." 
 
 Queen's research found that chips of both hardwood and softwood dissolved completely when placed directly in ionic liquid with the application of pressure and heat (100 degrees Celsius or 212 degrees Fahrenheit), Rodriguez said. The addition of a mixture of water and acetone causes the precipitation of a cellulose-enriched recovered wood, and later, the evaporation of acetone leads to the precipitation of lignin, according to Rodriguez. The ionic liquid is then regenerated by distilling the remaining mixture of ionic liquid and water. Distillation is possible because the ionic liquid does not evaporate. Additionally, the ionic liquid is reusable and biodegradable.
 
 "Ionic liquid is much cleaner and effective in taking lignin out of cellulose," Rodriguez said. Research is ongoing and the separation process hasn't been perfected yet, he said. "This is one of the products we're still working on."
 
 Researchers hope to achieve better dissolution under even softer conditions and are also trying to achieve complete separation of the different elements in one single step, according to Rodriguez. They are still looking for alternative ways to process wood and will look at the addition of eco-friendly additives to the ionic liquid system or the use of catalysts. 
 
 The project started in 2002 after the discovery that some ionic liquids could dissolve cellulose directly, Rodriguez said. As research progressed, it was discovered that a suit of biomass also could be dissolved and the team has published the work with a specific ionic liquid that possesses better characteristics than others previously used. "We have demonstrated the process on a laboratory scale, but obviously implementing the process in an industrial plant is not the same," he said.
 
 Both teams also are looking at biomass rich in essential oils that can be used in fragrance manufacturing and other processes.

New process uses ionic liquid to dissolve wood

Posted June 1, 2009, at 10:52 a.m. CST 
 
 The Governors' Biofuels Coalition, a biofuels policy development group that includes governors from the majority of U.S. states, received a letter from President Barack Obama on May 27 responding to the coalition's Feb. 17 letter requesting that the president articulate a vision for the future of biofuels in the U.S. The coalition also asked Obama to address policies related to life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions for transportation fuels, increasing ethanol blends to E13, increasing the sustainability of biofuel feedstocks, and further developing biofuels markets. 
 
 In his response, Obama said the coalition's suggestions were "very helpful" in drafting his May 5 Presidential Biofuels Directive, which established a Biofuels Interagency Working Group and announced additional recovery act funds for renewable fuel projects and his administration's notice of a proposed rulemaking on the renewable fuels standard. "It is my hope that the Presidential Biofuels Directive will lead to new jobs, new businesses and reduce dependence on foreign oil," the president said in his letter to the coalition. 
 
 Addressing the coalition's request to articulate a vision for the future of biofuels in the U.S., Obama looked beyond first-generation biofuels such as corn-based ethanol. "Advanced renewable transportation fuels will be one of the nation's most important industries in the 21st century," he said. "As you well know, the nation's biofuels industry today uses the starch portion of feedgrains as its primary feedstock, which has focused debate on how to accurately measure the greenhouse gas effect of corn-based ethanol. What is often underappreciated in this debate is that the industry is moving toward the utilization of a wide variety of nongrain feedstocks for biofuels." 
 
 Obama said his administration is committed to moving as quickly as possible "to commercialize an array of emerging cellulosic technologies so that tomorrow's biofuels will be produced from sustainable biomass feedstocks and waste materials rather than corn." 
 
 Biofuels in general "are the primary near-term option for insulating consumers against future oil price shocks and for lowering the transportation sector's carbon footprint," Obama noted, and the transition to advanced biofuels "will be successful only if the first-generation biofuels industry remains viable in the near-term." 
 
 The president did not specifically respond to the coalition's call for higher ethanol blends to increase demand for ethanol. The coalition noted that "temporarily lower oil prices and the near saturation of the 10 percent ethanol blend market are weakening the foundation of an industry that saved the nation hundreds of billions of dollars in oil imports in the past several years, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions." 
 
 "Corn ethanol is the foundation for all future opportunities, including cellulosic ethanol," said Tom Buis, CEO of Growth Energy, an ethanol industry group made up of producers and other supportive organizations, in a statement regarding Obama's letter. "Increasing the ethanol in our fuel supply to 15 percent is one step the administration can take right now toward accomplishing the president's stated goal of increasing the renewable fuel we use in this country to 60 billion gallons." 
 
 SOURCE: ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE

Obama responds to governors' biofuels concerns

Posted June 1, 2009, at 10:56 a.m. CST 
 
 Massachusetts-based biofuel company Qteros has announced that Kevin Gray has been appointed chief technology officer and Anthony "Tony" Tether has joined the company's board of directors. Qteros' Q microbe technology turns biomass into cellulosic ethanol. 
 
 Qteros, previously known as SunEthanol, has developed a proprietary technology known as C3 – Complete Cellulosic Conversion, which uses the naturally occurring Q microbe that has the unique ability to transform virtually any cellulosic material into ethanol in a single step. 
 
 Gray was previously Verenium Corp.'s senior director of biofuels research and development. He has more than 20 years of experience in managing high-level research at Diversa Corp., Energy BioSystems Corp., and Verenium. 
 
 "Qteros is an exciting, fast growing company, with a game changing microorganism," Gray said. "I'm excited to join the impressive Qteros science team and help bring the Q microbe technology to market." 
 
 Tether recently served as director of Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the central research and development office for the U.S. Department of Defense. He retired from the position in 2009, which he had held since 2001. He previously founded and led The Sequoia Group, which provides program management and strategy development services to government and industry. Tether was also CEO for Dynamics Technology Inc., and helped found Systems Control Inc. 
 
 "Throughout my career I've worked to develop advanced, high-payoff technologies, and the Q microbe fits this model," Tether said. "By successfully developing and distributing their technology, Qteros will be a leader in the next generation of fuels." 
 
 Meanwhile, San Antonio-based refiner Valero Energy Corp. has become a significant investor in Qteros through the acquisition of certain assets of VeraSun Energy Corp. 
 
 Valero owns and operates 16 refineries throughout the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean with a combined throughput capacity of approximately 3 million barrels per day. The company also owns and operates six ethanol plants in the Midwest, which it purchased from VeraSun. The ethanol facilities have a combined capacity of 670 MMgy. 
 
 Qteros has also received funding from British Petroleum plc, Venrock Battery Ventures and Soros Fund Management, as well as several grants from the U.S. DOE for technological development. Recently, Qteros announced it had received $2 million in U.S. appropriations for a pilot-scale plant in Springfield, Mass., which it plans to open this summer. 
 
 "Investment from established energy companies like Valero enables us to continue developing and scaling-up our technology," said Bill Frey, Qteros' CEO and formerly head of DuPont's biofuels division. "Qteros is moving ahead with our plans to open a pilot plant this year, as we continue preparations to expand to commercial scale production." 
 
 SOURCE: ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE

Gray, Tether join Qteros leadership team

Posted June 2, 2009, at 4:19 p.m. CST
 
 Chemrec, the "Fuel from the Forest" innovator, has entered into an agreement with Scott Sklar and The Stella Group Ltd. to support the company's efforts to raise awareness of Chemrec's integrated biorefineries at pulp and paper mills using its patented technology to convert a mill byproduct called black liquor into renewable biofuels, biomaterials or power. 
 
 The company has plans to design, build and operate integrated biorefineries across the U.S. To facilitate project financing, Chemrec working with the Stella Group intends to compete for federal, state and local government programs and incentives such as project grants and loan guarantees offered by the departments of energy and agriculture.
 The Stella Group is a strategic marketing and policy firm for clean distributed energy users and renewable energy and technology companies in biomass, solar, wind, batteries, energy efficiency and fuel cells. The firm blends distributed energy technologies, aggregates financing (including leasing), with a focus on system standardization.
 
 Scott Sklar, the group's founder and president, has co-authored books in the renewable energy field: "The Forbidden Fuel: Power Alcohol in the Twentieth Century," an updated version to be released in 2010, and "A Consumer Guide to Solar Energy." He is a frequent contributor to the largest clean energy web portal, www.RenewableEnergyWorld.com. He is chair of the steering committee of the Sustainable Energy Coalition and serves on the boards of directors of the Business Council for Sustainable Energy, and the Renewable Energy Policy Project, and co-chairs the policy committee of the Sustainable Buildings Industry Council.
 
 SOURCE: CHEMREC

Chemrec retains The Stella Group to optimize, leverage government incentives

Posted June 3, 2009, at 7:47 a.m. CST
 
 A network of researchers and institutions from Brazil and the U.S. was developed a couple of months ago by the Brazil-U.S. Higher Education Council under the auspices of the U.S. State Department through the Fulbright Commission in Brazil. Now, the network is offering a free short course July 27 to Aug. 7 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. 
 
 Dubbed the "1st Brazil-U.S. Short Course in Biofuels: Proving Interdisciplinary Education in Biofuels Technology," the objective is to provide interdisciplinary education in bioenergy and biofuel technology, and to improve the communication among institutions of higher education, science, and other public and private organizations in Brazil and the U.S. 
 
 The application deadline is June 15. 
 
 According to the Fulbright Commission, the course is an important tool and vehicle for those wanting to learn and discuss the best ways to serve the biofuels community. It aims to help biofuels researchers and professionals advance their development by giving them a chance to network. Both Brazil and the U.S. are investing in biofuels research and development programs, they have found that trained human resources, information, and networking opportunities to learn from these new advances that are occurring are required. 
 
 The coursework will include: 
 - An overview and research priorities in biofuels research in Brazil and the U.S. 
 - Feedstock production 
 - Feedstock biochemistry applied to biofuels 
 - Logistics: harvest, storage and transportation 
 - Conversion technologies: lipid process, sugar and starch, biochemical processing of cellulosic biomass, thermochemical processing of cellulosic biomass, chemical and catalytic processing 
 - Biorefinery systems 
 -Markets, economics and policies 
 -Sustainability, life-cycle analysis and certification process 
 
 Other components of the course include visits to ethanol and biodiesel plants, sugarcane mills and science and technology centers, and panel discussions. 
 
 There is no registration fee. Select participants will pay for and arrange their own transportation to Sao Paulo, where double-room accommodations including breakfast will be provided to all participating graduate students-except for those living in Sao Paulo. Daily lunches will also be provided throughout the course. 
 
 For more information and to register, visit <a href="http://www.fulbright.org.br">www.fulbright.org.br</a>, or <a href="http://www.brazil-usa-henetwork.org">www.brazil-usa-henetwork.org</a>; or call +55 61 3248 8614; or fax +55 61 3248 8611. 
 
 SOURCE: BIODIESEL MAGAZINE

First Brazil-US biofuels short course offered

Posted June 3, 2009, at 11:15 a.m. CST
 
 The Energy & Environmental Research Center at the University of North Dakota announced today that the preliminary program for the upcoming Biomass '09: Power, Fuels, and Chemicals Workshop is now available. Doug Goehring, North Dakota agriculture commissioner, will be the keynote presenter. The event is scheduled for July 14–15, 2009, at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks, N.D.
 
 "The production and utilization of energy and fuels derived from biomass sources represent significant opportunities for North Dakota and especially for our agricultural sector," Goehring said. "The EERC, through its ongoing research and now through this conference, provides key players and entities with the latest information they need to bring this promising technology into the marketplace."
 
 The workshop is the only conference in North Dakota that addresses the emerging opportunities for the economical production of power, transportation fuels, and chemical feedstocks from biomass.
 
 This year's program features five main sessions, covering topics such as trends and opportunities in utilizing biomass, two sessions on biofuels, biomass feedstocks, and biomass for heat and electricity. The program features more than 35 speakers representing all aspects of the biomass industry from across the country. Special comments will be provided by video from U.S. Sens. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., and Byron Dorgan, D-N.D. 
 
 "The program is particularly intriguing this year because of the pressure on biofuels to compete economically," said EERC Deputy Associate Director for Research Chris Zygarlicke. "For example, the American Coalition on Ethanol will update us on corn ethanol, which has come under heavy scrutiny lately, and both POET and Abengoa will give a status report on the development of noncorn-based cellulosic ethanol technologies.
 
 "Even more cutting-edge," Zygarlicke, continued "will be presentations on algae as a biomass feedstock by IF LLC and Midwest Research Institute; a look at producing fungible hydrocarbon fuels, particularly the first-ever 100 percent renewable jet fuel and diesel developed by the EERC; and biofuel production technology from Syntec Biofuel Inc."
 
 Event organizers anticipate more than 350 people will attend this year's biomass workshop, which includes a full trade show with more than 40 exhibitors. Last year's workshop attracted more than 290 participants from more than 30 states and two foreign countries (Canada and India).
 
 Organizing sponsors of the Biomass '09 include the EERC and the U.S. DOE through the EERC's Centers for Renewable Energy and Biomass Utilization. The North Dakota Department of Commerce Division of Community Services State Energy Program is the signature sponsor. Partnering sponsors include Barr Engineering; Fredrikson & Byron, P.A.; Great River Energy; Manitoba Hydro; North Central Sun Grant Center (South Dakota State University); the North Dakota Farmers Union; and Xcel Energy as well as event sponsor Otter Tail Power Co.
 
 The Biomass '09 Workshop is open to the public. For up-to-date program information or to register, log on to <a href="http://www.undeerc.org/biomass09 ">www.undeerc.org/biomass09 </a>or contact the registration department at (701) 777-5246.
 
 SOURCE: EERC

ND Ag Commissioner to give keynote address at EERC biomass workshop

Posted June 3, 2009, at 1:17 p.m. CST
 
 Biomass, wind and hydro are the most important technologies to generate jobs under the EU's Renewable Energy Directive, according to a study recently conducted on behalf of the European Commission's Directorate-General Energy and Transport.
 
 At the end of 2008, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union agreed on the RED, which commits EU member states to achieve a 20 percent share of renewable energy in the country's energy consumption by 2020, and to cut carbon emissions 20 percent by 2020. 
 
 Several different economic models were used for study assessments, including input-output model MULTIREG, which was used to observe the effect of developments in the renewable energy sources (RES) sector on other economic sectors. 
 
 In general, the study assessed the economic effects of supporting the RES, looking at jobs in the RES sector as well as its impact on all sectors of the economy.
 
 The report found that more than 60 percent of total RES sector employment generation is due to biomass technologies. The major share of employment is triggered by the supply of biomass for fuel use. The study points out, however, that the share attributed to biomass is subject to uncertainty because significant amounts of biomass for non-grid use do not appear to be purchased at market prices, rather they are obtained from the producers own resources or informal channels. Therefore, it is assumed that 50 percent of biomass obtained by private households is purchased at market prices.
 
 The recent strong growth in comparably low-cost biomass and onshore wind projects needs to be sustained, as the technologies are expected to generate most of the near-term future RES production, employment and economic growth, according to the study. 
 
 It was also found that improving current policies so that the target of 20 percent RES in final energy consumption in 2020 can be achieved will provide a net effect of about 410,000 additional jobs to the estimated 2.8 million in the RES sector, as well as a 0.24 percent additional gross domestic product. 
 
 To view the report, visit <a href="http://ec.europa.eu/energy/renewables/studies/doc/renewables/2009_employ_res_summary.pdf">http://ec.europa.eu/energy/renewables/studies/doc/renewables/2009_employ_res_summary.pdf</a>.

Biomass generates most jobs in renewable energy

Posted June 3, 2009, at 4:49 p.m. CST 
 
 Khosla Ventures and Burrill & Co., two U.S. venture capital funds, recently announced they are investing in HCL CleanTech to further development of converting cellulosic materials into low-cost fermentable sugars. 
 
 HCL CleanTech, a technology development company based in the U.S. with an Israeli subsidiary, was cofounded by Israeli industrial chemical research scientists Professor Avraham Baniel and Professor Ari Eyal. The company has developed a proprietary technology to convert lignocellulosic biomass to fermentable sugars, which are considered the gateway to advanced biofuels and biochemicals. The process is an old, industrially proven German one, but with modern chemical technology the implementation is straightforward and immediate. HCL CleanTech efficiently uses concentrated hydrochloric acid to hydrolyze all cellulosic materials, allowing a large variety of feedstocks to be used with minimal configuration. It also requires minimal water and is energetically self-sufficient. 
 
 "Accessing cheap sugar locked in biomass is one of the greatest challenges now faced by those pursuing renewable fuels and chemicals," said Greg Young, director of Burrill & Co. "HCL CleanTech's technology represents a step change in accessing these sugars, and drops into the pretreatment step of any fermentation-based process or chemical reforming technique which starts with oligosaccharides. We are eager to see this proven at scale, at which point it becomes immediately relevant to adjacent industries aiming to use biomass as a feedstock." 
 
 Burrill & Co. is a life sciences merchant bank focused on companies involved in a variety of industries, including biotechnology, industrial (biomaterials/bioprocess) and agricultural biotechnology. California-based Khosla Ventures helps entrepreneurs extend the potential of their ideas in a variety of clean technology areas, including solar, battery, high-efficiency engines, lighting, greener materials like cement, glass and biorefineries for energy and bioplastics. 
 
 Zohar Gilon, the lead seed investor, along with the company's founders joined Burrill & Co. and Khosla Ventures in the Series A round of financing. The proceeds will be used to continue research and development efforts in Israel and to build a pilot plant in the U.S., which the company said it expects to be completed in 2010. 
 
 SOURCE: ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE

Khosla Ventures, Burrill invest in cellulosic company

Posted June 4, 2009 at 10:47 a.m. CST 
 
 The government of Canada has introduced a program aimed at enhancing community planning initiatives to develop sustainable, energy-efficient communities. The $4.2 million initiative is jointly led and funded by Natural Resources Canada and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. 
 
 The EQuilibrium Communities Initiative will provide financial, technical and promotional assistance to sustainable community projects selected through a national competition that is open to developers and their teams of planners, designers and municipalities. 
 
 Submissions will be evaluated by a panel of industry experts based on a number of criteria, including energy-efficiency; water, wastewater and storm water; transportation and the reduction of the use of fossil fuels; natural environment; and financial viability. A call for project submissions will be issued this summer in which approximately six winning neighborhood development projects will be chosen. 
 
 "The EQuilibrium Communities Initiative will highlight the talents and innovation of Canadian residential developers, planners, designers and municipalities as leaders in sustainable housing and community development," said Ed Komarnicki, parliamentary secretary to Diane Finley, minister of human resources and skills development Canada and the minister responsible for CMHC. "These communities will integrate sustainable housing, infrastructure and land-use planning to help Canadians balance their housing needs with those of the natural environment." 
 
 The initiative is funded through CMHC's housing research program and NRCan's ecoEnergy Technology Initiative, which supports the development and demonstration of the next-generation clean energy technologies. 
 
 For more information on the EQuilibrium Communities initiative, visit <a href="http://www.ecoaction.gc.ca">http://www.ecoaction.gc.ca</a>.
 
 SOURCE: BIOENERGY CANADA'S BIOENERGY BULLETIN

Canadian government launches sustainable communities program

Posted June 4, 2009, at 11:15 a.m. CST
 
 PetroAlgae, an alternative energy company, today announced the addition of nine senior international sales executives to license its breakthrough commercial micro-crop technology system that enables large-scale production of clean fuel and food to customers in North America, South America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. The nine executives bring a wealth of experience to PetroAlgae having worked for companies including BP, ConocoPhillips, Cargill, Trinity Industries, Merrill Lynch and Syngenta. With these latest additions, PetroAlgae now employs 115 employees and is continuing to build its team as it prepares for commercialization. The company noted that the additional new hires represented a 28 percent increase from its fourth quarter, ending December 31, when the count stood at 90. 
 
 "PetroAlgae's expansion is continuing at a rapid pace, undeterred by a harsh economic climate or the chill in capital markets," said PetroAlgae Chairman John Scott. "The company now has virtually all of the elements in place to meet its goal of bringing its micro-crop technology to market this year giving PetroAlgae the first-mover advantage in a multi-billion dollar renewable-fuels market." 
 
 Today's news follows PetroAlgae's recent announcement that it has established a Washington D.C., office and named three executives to work with the Obama Administration, Congress, nonprofit groups and the business community to create a marketplace for clean, sustainable fuels. 
 
 SOURCE: PETROALGAE

Petroalgae hires international sales team

Posted June 4, 2009, at 3:01 p.m. CST
 
 A letter of intent established this week between the Saskatchewan Ministry of Energy and Resources and Iogen Energy and Domtar sets the stage for a potential redevelopment of the Prince Albert Pulp Mill into a cellulosic ethanol plant and bioenergy facility.
 
 Iogen will begin detailed assessment work to develop the cellulosic ethanol plant that will run on cereal straw from local contracted farmers, and determine whether to move forward. If the investment decision is positive, the multi-million dollar project, in partnership with Royal Dutch Shell, will include a power plant producing green electricity from forest and ethanol plant residues, according to the Ministry of Energy and Resources. 
 
 Iogen will hold public consultations June 15-17 with communities and First Nations in the area, and proceed with detailed engineering studies and environmental approvals. A timeline for the decision has not been established, according to Mandy Chepeka, director of communications for Iogen.
 
 The pulp mill, owned by Domtar, has been dormant since April 2006, according to the Ministry of Energy and Resources. If the project proceeds, Iogen and Royal Dutch Shell would buy the required mill assets from Domtar. The government would then assume ownership of the remaining mill property and be responsible for existing environmental obligations associated with the decommissioning of the pulp mill site, it said. In exchange, Domtar would pay an environmental settlement fee to the province to compensate for its share of environmental site obligations.
 
 The government also would commit to purchasing the green power produced by the plant if the project goes ahead, and provide new growth tax incentives related to technology commercialization and transportation.
 	
 The total cost of the project still is under review, Chepeka said. The ethanol plant would consume about 750 tons of wheat straw per day, trucked to the site, she said, producing more than 70 MMly (18.5 MMgy). The company has yet to determine if the fuel will be sold commercially, she added. 
 
 If the project proceeds, it will bring several environmental and economic benefits. "Cellulosic ethanol is a low-greenhouse gas fuel," Chepeka said. It also will provide another stream of revenue for the farmers providing the wheat straw, along with creating 80 to 100 new jobs at the plant itself and even more in "spin-off jobs," Chepeka said, including transportation and baling.

Agreement may result in Prince Albert ethanol plant

Posted June 4, 2009, at 5:15 p.m. CST
 
 Four thousand standard cubic feet of landfill gas per minute is now being pumped from Conestoga Landfill to seven businesses in Lancaster and Berks counties in Pennsylvania, providing green energy. The project is a collaborative effort among Republic Services Inc., a waste and environmental services provider, UGI Utilities, a natural gas utility company, and Granger, a renewable energy company.
 
 A nine-mile low-pressure gas service pipeline connects to an existing pipeline to deliver the gas to Dart, Advanced Food Products, L&S Sweeteners, New Holland Concrete, Tyson Foods, Case New Holland and H.R. Ewell. Among them, the gas will help fuel 25 boilers, four hot oil heaters, four ovens, three indirect-fired heaters, two direct-fired heaters, two remote thermal oxidizers and two process water heaters. It's the largest landfill gas utilization project in Pennsylvania, one of the longest landfill gas pipelines and the largest multiple-customer project in the country.
 
 As the garbage in landfills decomposes, it produces a gas with approximately a 50-50 mix of carbon dioxide and methane. The gas for this project is captured through a perforated well pipe and pipe gathering system before it's pulled from the landfill into the Granger facility, where it is processed and used as a fuel source piped directly to the end users, according to the companies. "Landfills start producing gas six or so years after they start accepting waste," said Peg Mulloy, manager of media relations for Republics Services. "There's a lot of science that goes into waste management. This is one of the greatest discoveries." The company operates 213 landfills, she said, and is looking to develop similar projects wherever it is feasible and where companies are interested in using the gas.
 
 The annual reduction of greenhouse gases attributable to the Conestoga Landfill Gas Recovery Project is about the same as the annual greenhouse gas emissions from nearly 86,711 passenger vehicles, the carbon dioxide emissions from more than 1 million barrels of oil consumed, or the carbon sequestered by more than 107,600 acres of pine or fir forests, according to the companies. Annual energy savings will equate to powering nearly 14,000 average homes. The groundbreaking for the project was in spring of 2007 and it was dedicated in late May 2009.
 
 "It's a great way to use what would be thought of as waste," Mulloy said.

Landfill gas piped to businesses in Pennsylvania

Posted June 4, 2009
 
 U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen has successfully strengthened energy legislation with an amendment that would boost New Hampshire's biomass industry, increase biomass efficiency and help create jobs. Shaheen's amendment unanimously passed the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and will be part of the 2009 Energy Bill, scheduled to come before the full Senate later this year.
 
 "New Hampshire is the second most forested state in the nation, and this legislation would give a boost to our existing biomass companies and help renewable energy entrepreneurs build new plants," said Shaheen. "New Hampshire's timber resources are an incredible resource, and by ensuring that we use them as efficiently as possible, we will accelerate our movement toward energy independence, cut down on waste, and create good jobs making biomass plants more efficient. This legislation does exactly that."
 
 Congressional Research Service estimates that current biomass plants operate at only 21 percent efficiency, meaning that fully 79 percent of biomass energy potential is lost through escaped heat. Some New Hampshire biomass plants such as Concord Steam in Concord have greatly increased their efficiency by using that energy to heat local businesses. Shaheen's legislation seeks to reward highly efficient biomass plants like Concord Steam and encourages inefficient plants to create jobs by upgrading their efficiency, and provides incentives for new plants to be more efficient.
 
 "As we move toward energy independence, we need to ensure we're using our resources wisely and efficiently," said Steve Walker, president of New England Wood Pellet in Jaffrey, N.H. "Senator Shaheen's amendment supports renewable biomass fuel companies like New England Wood Pellet and rewards efficient biomass energy producers."
 
 The Shaheen amendment would give more energy credits to highly efficient biomass plants as part of the Energy Bill's proposed renewable energy standard, under which energy producers must either meet a 15 percent renewable standard themselves or buy Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) from renewable energy producers to satisfy the requirement. Under the Energy Bill, New Hampshire's biomass energy plants would receive RECs for the energy they produce and would be able to sell RECs to utilities and other energy producers.
 
 SOURCE: SEN. JEANNE SHAHAEEN

Shaheen amendment to give New Hampshire biomass industry a boost

Posted June 8, 2009, at 1:35 p.m. CST
 
 Brazil could produce 4.6 billion to 8.2 billion liters (1.2 billion to 2.2 billion gallons) of biofuel from sugarcane residue by 2020, in addition to that made from sugar itself, according to a recently released Novozymes report. Development, however, will depend on the industry's ability to attract investments and political support.
 
 The concept was part of discussions at last week's Ethanol Summit, June 1-3 in Sao Paulo. Steen Riisgaard, CEO of the Danish-based company, presented in detail the report's findings at the event, according to Novozymes. "Today Brazilian and European cars run on sugar," he said. "Tomorrow they will run on agricultural residues." The additional production could mean up to $4 billion in export revenue for the country, the report says.
 
 "Brazil, today, is producing tons and tons of biomass each year," said Pedro Fernandez, Novozymes regional president for Latin America. "It could be a very profitable business to the sugar and ethanol industry."
 
 Novozymes and its partner, Brazil's CTC (Sugarcane Technology Center), will study the cost-effectiveness of producing ethanol from sugarcane bagasse and evaluate its benefits, which will be crucial in gaining support from the government. "Our target is to present this economic model no later than the middle of next year," Fernandez said. "Second generation biofuel technology is a product. You have to have something to sell; to present. Is our sugarcane industry prepared to produce more ethanol?" he questioned. "Do we have the market to sell this bioethanol?" It's a fantastic opportunity, he added, but Novozymes does not yet have a cost-effective technology to show it. 
 
 The research team, including Novozymes' partners in Brazil, Denmark and Sweden, will continue to work on developing its enzyme. The enzyme blend works great, he said, but the team needs to focus now on making it more cost-effective. The team received a 1.6 million euro (about $2.2 million) grant from the European Union in support of its work. In the next two years, researchers must come up with a cost-effective enzyme blend and effective pretreatment process, the most important part, according to Fernandez. That's more than enough time, he said. "It's important to have all aspects integrated. If something unexpected happens in the technology, we're going to put our money in the trash." 
 
 U.S. and EU legislation favors biofuels made from residues instead of other feedstocks, according to Novozymes. In Brazil, the proportion of bioethanol used in transportation fuel is 50 percent, much higher than the U.S.'s 7 percent, China's 2 percent or Europe's 1 percent, according to Novozymes. In the past year, the European Union doubled its import of biofuel, with the majority of supplies coming from Brazil, the company said.
 
 "At the end of the day, what we're going to have is a cost-effective way to produce second-generation ethanol," Fernandez said.

June 2009

Business Briefs

UMass Amherst receives DARPA award

Michael Best forms climate change group

MAC celebrates 40th anniversary

River Consulting recognized as Top 500 Design Firm

GPRE, BioprocessAlgae complete funding for algae project

Hastings advises Gevo in series D financing

Novozymes recognized for ethical leadership

Ze-gen hires Sidwell as senior process engineer

Mascoma moves corporate office to New Hampshire

Future ethanol producers continue to seek funding

Stoel Rives publishes economic stimulus guide

Business Briefs: Companies, Organizations & People in the News

Columns

Opportunity is Knocking

All Eyes are on the Biomass Industry

The Future is Today

Springtime Doesn't Make the Cold Flow Issue Go Away

The Feedstock Puzzle

Letter to the Editor: The Perils of Chinese Biodiesel Producers

Featured

Reinventing Smethport's Forest Legacy

Have Trailer-Will Move Biomass

Duckweed Quacks Volumes of Potential

Biomass in the City of Roses

Bleeding Green

B100 to the Arctic Circle

Q&A with Bob McCormick on Low-temperature Operability

Contributions

Biomass Project Financing Solutions in Today's Difficult Capital Markets

June 2009.css-7jxktu{position:absolute;bottom:0px;left:0px;right:0px;height:3px;border-radius:3px;background-color:var(--chakra-colors-brandBlack);}

Business Briefs

UMass Amherst receives DARPA award

Michael Best forms climate change group

MAC celebrates 40th anniversary

River Consulting recognized as Top 500 Design Firm

GPRE, BioprocessAlgae complete funding for algae project

Hastings advises Gevo in series D financing

Novozymes recognized for ethical leadership

Ze-gen hires Sidwell as senior process engineer

Mascoma moves corporate office to New Hampshire

Future ethanol producers continue to seek funding

Stoel Rives publishes economic stimulus guide

Business Briefs: Companies, Organizations & People in the News

Columns

Opportunity is Knocking

All Eyes are on the Biomass Industry

The Future is Today

Springtime Doesn't Make the Cold Flow Issue Go Away

The Feedstock Puzzle

Letter to the Editor: The Perils of Chinese Biodiesel Producers

Featured

Reinventing Smethport's Forest Legacy

Have Trailer-Will Move Biomass

Duckweed Quacks Volumes of Potential

Biomass in the City of Roses

Bleeding Green

B100 to the Arctic Circle

Q&A with Bob McCormick on Low-temperature Operability

Contributions

Biomass Project Financing Solutions in Today's Difficult Capital Markets

June 2009