Biomass Week - August 14, 2015

August 14, 2015

Study suggets residential pellet offgassing a nonissue A new study, indoor storage of pellets in homes using the fuel for heat does not pose a risk of generating carbon monoxide (CO) levels above recommended thresholds. READ MORE SHARE
Rentech reports delays at Atikokan, Wawa pellet plants On Aug. 11, Rentech Inc. released its financial earnings for the three and six months ended June 30, reporting a revenue increase compared to the prior year period, but combined output, losses for its Canadian pellet plants worse than expected. READ MORE SHARE
	Metabolix Q2 results focus on future commercial development On Aug. 12, Metabolix Inc. released its second quarter financial results, emphasizing its focus on commercial development and biopolymer production with its pivot to a new business strategy focused on specialties. READ MORE SHARE
GAO report addresses DOD alternative fuels investments The U.S. Government Accountability Office has published a report focused on U.S. Department of Defense investments in alternative fuels. From 2007 through 2014, the DOD purchased about 2 million gallons of alternative fuels for testing purposes. READ MORE SHARE
USDA GAIN report highlights EU pellet, biogas markets A report recently filed with the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service's Global Agricultural Information Network provides an overview of the European Union's bioenergy sector, including data on the use of wood pellets and biogas. READ MORE SHARE
Biomass Research and Development Committee to meet in August The U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy has announced an open meeting of the Biomass Research and Development Committee. The event is scheduled to be held Aug. 27-28 in Washington, D.C. READ MORE SHARE
Waste heat from biogas system to heat C&D facility in Wisconsin Since ground break in late June, progress has been made on a construction and demolition (C&D) recycling facility addition to the Dane County, Wisconsin, landfill site. The foundation is in place, the walls are going up and the equipment is ordered. READ MORE SHARE
Propel brings Neste renewable diesel to Southern California Propel Fuels began offering Neste Oil's NExBTL renewable diesel Aug. 12 at 13 Southern California locations serving Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego and the Inland Empire. Marketed as Diesel HPR, the fuel consists of 98.5 percent NExBTL. READ MORE SHARE
Neste increases renewable fuel sales to North America Neste has released second quarter financial results, reporting comparable operating project of EUR 78 million ($84.94 million), down from EUR 86 million during the same period of 2014. Net cash from operations totaled EUR 227 million. READ MORE SHARE
Capstone reports revenue growth, significant orders in Q1 results Capstone Turbine Corp. recently released its quarter one financial results, reporting a total revenue increase of 16 percent to $27 million, compared with $23.3 million for the same period in the prior year. READ MORE SHARE
EIA short-term outlook highlights bioenergy production forecasts The U.S. Energy Information Administration has released the August edition of its Short-Term Energy Outlook, predicting total renewables used in the electric power generation sector will decrease by 2.6 percent this year. READ MORE SHARE

NREL: Ethylene production via sunlight opens door to future Jianping Yu, a researcher at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, has proven a certain cyanobacterium can be genetically engineered to produce ethylene. Now it's time to take the research outside of the laboratory. READ MORE SHARE
CPI to produce biogas from seaweed using anaerobic digestion The U.K.-based Centre for Process Innovation has announced that it is leading a three-year project to produce biomethane from seaweed through anaerobic digestion. The project will initiate the development of a viable seaweed supply chain. READ MORE SHARE
Viaspace Giant King Grass converted to coal replacement Viaspace Inc. has announced that PCS Biofuels Inc. of Vancouver, Canada, has converted Giant King Grass into a high-energy, carbon neutral, drop-in replacement for coal using its patented polymer carbon solid (PCS) thermal catalytic process. READ MORE SHARE
Forest Concepts awarded SBIR contract to improve biomass drying Forest Concepts LLC was recently notified that it has been awarded a two-year $499,997 Small Business Innovation Research contract from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture to improve biomass drying efficiency. READ MORE SHARE
NYSERDA makes wood heating systems more affordable The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority has announced increased levels of support through Renewable Heat NY for high-efficiency, low-emission wood heating systems to improve the return-on-investment for homeowners and businesses. READ MORE SHARE
Abengoa selected to build world’s largest biomass CHP plant Abengoa and Toshiba Corp. have been selected as preferred bidders to build the Tees Renewable Energy Plant. The project is owned by MGT Teesside and will have a capacity of 299 MW of electricity and steam. READ MORE SHARE
PHI Group completes land acquisition for Florida pellet project PHI Group recently announced that it has completed the acquisition of 10 acres of land from Klausner Holding U.S.A., a Georgia corporation, for the Cornerstone Biomass Corp. 200,000 metric ton wood pellet project in Live Oak, Florida. READ MORE SHARE
Alliance BioEnergy Plus announces plant development agreement Alliance BioEnergy Plus Inc. recently announced that it entered into a non-exclusive development agreement with Renewable Resources Development of America LLC for the construction and operation of up to 56 cellulose conversion plants. READ MORE SHARE
USDA announces $63 million in REAP awards Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack recently announced $63 million in loans and grants for 264 renewable energy and energy efficiency projects nationwide that USDA is supporting through its Rural Energy for America Program. READ MORE SHARE