UPM Biofuels is developing a new feedstock concept by growing Brassica Carinata as a sequential crop in South America. The Carinata crop produces non-edible oil suitable for biofuel feedstock and protein for animal feed.
On July 5, the U.S. released its proposed rule to set 2018 renewable volume standards (RVOs) under the RFS, along with the 2019 RVO for biomass-based diesel. Overall, the proposed RVOs require 19.24 billion gallons of renewable fuels in 2018.
A Tesoro oil refinery in Dickinson, North Dakota, has plans to co-process renewable feedstock along with regionally sourced Bakken crude oil to produce a 5 percent renewable diesel blend. Construction is planned for October with start-up in December.
Royal Dutch Shell plc and SBI BioEnergy Inc. have reached an agreement granting Shell exclusive development and licensing rights for SBI's biofuel technology.
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) recently voted to purchase 295 40-foot compressed natural gas (CNG) buses, which will be fueled by renewable natural gas (RNG).
Members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee recently asked U.S. EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt to detail policies and procedures the agency has put in place to prevent Carl Icahn from influencing the RFS for personal financial gain.
The U.S. EPA has released renewable identification number (RIN) generation data for May, reporting more than 1.66 billion RINs were generated during the month, including nearly 21.98 million cellulosic RINs.
The Water Environment Federation and the American Biogas Council are partnering to expand the conversion of organic waste into renewable energy and valuable soil products at facilities across the U.S.
Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue recently named three individuals who will take on leadership roles as the USDA continues the reorganization announced on May 11.
Renewable Energy Group recently announced it has completed the $20 million acquisition of approximately 82 acres of land at and in close proximity to its Geismar, Louisiana, biorefinery from Lion Copolymer.
The U.S. Department of Energy is awarding 263 grants totaling $116 million to 184 small businesses under the Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs. Several of the awards support bioenergy projects.
Amyris Inc. and the government of Queensland, Australia, recently announced the next step their plans to develop a leading industrial biotechnology hub in Southeast Asia. The proposed facility will produce biobased farnesene.
S2G BioChem, a developer of natural biotechnology conversion processes, recently announced that it has started work on the company's first standalone biorefinery demonstration plant that it intends to build in Sarnia, Ontario.
Velocys plc recently announced the USDA has invited it to submit a Phase II application for a loan guarantee to support the development of a commercial-scale biorefinery with the capacity to produce 19 million gallons of renewable diesel per year.
ExxonMobil and Synthetic Genomics Inc. have announced a breakthrough in joint research into advanced biofuels involving the modification of an algae strain that more than doubled its oil content without significantly inhibiting the strain's growth.
The Appalachian Regional Commission has awarded $1.5 million to New York-based Alfred State College to support its Biorefinery Development and Commercialization Center project, which aims to leverage wood resources to create sustainable business.
U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry recently announced the appointment of Thomas Zacharia as the new Director of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. He was unanimously selected by the UT-Battelle board of governors to succeed Thom Mason.
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue has named Anne Hazlett to lead USDA's Rural Development agencies. Hazlett, who's title will be assistant to the secretary for Rural Development, will report directly to Perdue.
California waste recovery company Resynergi Inc. is drawing on University of Minnesota expertise and technology to develop and commercially manufacture a biorefining technology that converts both plastic and biomass into oil and gas.
Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Marine Sciences Laboratory in Sequim, Washington, are working to lower the cost of producing biofuels from algae by utilizing an indoor system that mimics the conditions of outdoor ponds.
VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland will expand the operation of the Bioruukki pilot center located in Espoo, from thermochemistry to novel ways of biomass utilization, recycling of textile fibers and green chemistry technologies.
Researchers at the German Aerospace Center, Lufthansa Technik and the Bundeswehr Research Institute for Materials, Fuels and Lubricants, recently investigated the chemical and physical properties promising biofuels in an airline turbine.
On June 6, a group of five senators sent a letter to U.S. EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt requesting any information the agency has on Carl Icahn's role in crafting policy and regulations at the EPA, particularly regarding the Renewable Fuel Standard.
The USDA and U.S. Department of Energy are making up to $9 million in funding available through the Biomass Research and Development Initiative to support the development of bioenergy feedstocks, biofuels and biobased products.
Alliance BioEnergy Plus Inc. recently announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, AMG Energy Group, has entered into a sublicensing agreement with Earth's Renewable Energy LLC of Newport Beach, California.
Commercial forests in the Southeast are owned by millions of private individuals and families who are currently struggling to see the value in taking on the cost of certification.
A team led by researchers at the University of California, Santa Barbara has found for the first time that early lineages of fungi can form complexes of enzymes capable of degrading plant biomass.
Air Liquide has been awarded a five-year contract to supply a large volume of oxygen per year to an advanced biofuels facility being constructed by Advanced Plasma Power and Cadent that will produce biosubstitute natural gas.
Marvin Hall, a researcher in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences, is working to bring a highly productive life back to land damaged by mining using switchgrass, a crop that can be used as an alternative fuel source.
The Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials recently released a report reviewing its 2016 activities and highlighting its increased impact and presence in the global renewable fuels industry. A total of 17 countries are now represented in the program.
Advertisement