Biomass Week - August 8, 2014

USDA, DOE and EPA release Biogas Opportunities Roadmap The USDA has published its Biogas Opportunities Roadmap, a document that builds on progress made to date to identify voluntary actions that can be taken to reduce methane emissions through the use of biogas systems. READ MORE SHARE
EPA proposes further extension of 2013 RFS compliance deadline The U.S. EPA is extending the 2013 renewable fuel standard (RFS) compliance deadlines for a third time, setting the compliance reports and attest engagement report deadlines 30 days and 90 days following the publication of the 2014 RFS, respectively. READ MORE SHARE
	ReEnergy to resume operations at Ashland biomass plant ReEnergy Holdings has announced plans to resume operations at its biomass-to-electricity facility in Ashland, Maine. The 39-MW facility was acquired by ReEnergy in December 2011 and has been idle since March 2011. READ MORE SHARE
Drax loses appeal over CfD, expected to proceed with conversion On Aug. 7, Drax Group plc released a statement indicating that its second unit conversion is no longer eligible for an investment contract. Rather, the company is expected to proceed with the conversion with support under the Renewables Obligation. READ MORE SHARE
Proposed pellet plant to export product to South Korea A proposed pellet plant under development near Mission, British Columbia, aims to produce wood pellets for export into industrial markets in South Korea and other Asian markets. The project is being developed by SMG Wood Pellet Inc. READ MORE SHARE
Expansion of fiber business outlined in Rentech Q2 earnings call Rentech CEO Hunt Ramsbottom outlined the company's continued efforts to expand its fiber business in a quarterly earnings call. READ MORE SHARE
Amyris expects to deliver positive EBITDA next year During a call to discuss second quarter financial results, John Melo, president and CEO of Amyris Inc., indicated the company is on track to deliver positive operational cash flow during the second half of the year and positive EBITDA in 2015. READ MORE SHARE
Ameresco evaluating biogas RIN opportunities During its recent Q2 financial earnings call, Ameresco Inc. indicated it is exploring opportunities that the growing renewable compressed and liquid natural gas market has to offer. READ MORE SHARE
REG provides update of Dynamic Fuels acquisition in Q2 results Renewable Energy Group Inc. recently announced second quarter financial results and provided an update on its recent acquisition of the former Dynamic Fuels renewable diesel facility. READ MORE SHARE
Ontario pellet plant expected to begin operations in Q4 Resolute Forest Products Inc. provided a brief update on the status of its pellet plant under development in Thunder Bay, Ontario, during its second quarter investor conference call. The facility is expected to be operational in the fourth quarter. READ MORE SHARE
Utility proposes low buyback rate for customer-sited bioenergy Contained in Milwaukee-based We Energies' pending rate filing is a proposal to cut the buyback rate for new customer-sited bioenergy projects by more than half, down to 4.24 cents per kilowatt-hour beginning in January 2016. READ MORE SHARE
USDA report aims to provide uniform method for GHG assessment The USDA recently published a report that provides uniform scientific methods for quantifying the changes in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and carbon storage from various land management and conservation activities. READ MORE SHARE
Solazyme Q2 results: Increased production, customers and revenue Solazyme Inc. announced optimistic results for second quarter 2014 with total revenue at $15.9 million compared with $11.2 million in the second quarter of 2013, an increase of 43 percent. Second quarter GAAP net loss was $42.9 million. READ MORE SHARE
California Energy Commission awards grants to biofuel projects The California Energy Commission has awarded funding to several biogas and renewable diesel projects under the Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program. READ MORE SHARE
Grid synchronization achieved at Texas bioenergy facility Gemma Power Systems LLC has completed initial synchronization of the Woodville Renewable Power Project with the electric grid operated by the Midwest Independent System Operator. READ MORE SHARE
Fulcrum Bioenergy, Cathay Pacific announce strategic investment Cathay Pacific Airways has announced that it is the first airline investor in Fulcrum BioEnergy Inc. as part of the airline's biofuel strategy and to help it achieve a target of carbon-neutral growth from 2020. READ MORE SHARE
Hawaii funds biofuel project Gov. Neil Abercrombie recently presented a $1.6 million check on behalf of the Hawaii Department of Agriculture to the Daniel K. Inouye U.S. Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center's zero-waste biofuel and high-protein feed program. READ MORE SHARE
USDA announces inclusion of wood products in BioPreferred program The USDA has issued a final rule eliminating the restrictions on including mature market wood products and other materials in the BioPreferred program. The action implements changes included in the 2014 Farm Bill. READ MORE SHARE
Genomatica: Nylon intermediates focus of development program Genomatica announced that major nylon intermediates, including hexamethylenediamine, caprolactam and adipic acid (HMD, CPL and ADA), are the focus of its third publicly-disclosed development program. READ MORE SHARE
Boeing, SAA partner to turn new tobacco plant into jet fuel Boeing, South African Airways and SkyNRG have announced they are collaborating to make sustainable aviation biofuel from a new type of tobacco plant. SkyNRG is expanding production of the hybrid plant, known as Solaris. READ MORE SHARE
AgriLife Research: Mesquite a complementary biofuel feedstock A recent Texas A&M AgriLife Research study outlines how mesquite measures up relative to other bioenergy feedstocks with regard to economic and greenhouse gas efficiency. READ MORE SHARE
Dyadic, CIMV to collaborate on second generation biofuels Dyadic International Inc. recently announced that it has signed a collaboration agreement to commercialize second generation biofuel and bio-based chemical technology with Compagnie Industrielle de la Matiere Vegetale. READ MORE SHARE
Bioenergy week planned in Ontario Canadian Bioenergy Association, the Forest Products Association of Canada, Lakehead University, Confederation College and the Biomass Innovation Centre of Nipissing University are partnering to offer a full-slate of events from Sept. 8-13 in Ontario. READ MORE SHARE
Purdue: Cover crops make stover more sustainable, profitable Farmers using cover crops as a soil conservation method can remove much more corn stover per acre for biofuels or other uses and at the same time potentially increase their income, Purdue University research shows. READ MORE SHARE
UC Riverside engineers develop new biofuel production technology A team of researchers at the University of California, Riverside's Bourns College of Engineering have developed a versatile, relatively non-toxic, and efficient way to convert biomass into biofuels and biobased chemicals. READ MORE SHARE