A Busy Week for International Development
December 23, 2011
I've marveled this week at burgeoning international biomass development. While foreign biomass industry advancement isn't new, this week seems to set itself apart from the rest in the sheer number of biomass-related announcements.
Researchers at Finland's Aalto University have developed and patented a method to produce butanol and other industrial chemicals from woody biomass. The method involves an altered pulping process resulting in sugars that can be converted by microbes.
Feedstock development company NexSteppe recently announced it has raised $16 million in its second round of funding led by Braemer Energy Ventures. Previous investors also participated in the funding round, including CYM Ventures and Zygote Ventures.
Elm Street Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm based in New Haven, Conn., has provided financing for the formation of a new company, P2 Science, which aims to usher in a new class of high-performance surfactants called C-glycosides.
RFA presses EPA to release final 2012 RFS volumes
December 22, 2011
The U.S. EPA's Nov. 30 deadline to finalize biofuels volume requirements for the 2012 renewable fuel standard (RFS) came and went with no announcement from the agency or any indication of when it might release the final numbers.
CARB releases 2011 LCFS review report
December 22, 2011
CARB has completed the first required formal review of the California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard. No immediate changes to the policy are anticipated, which means a .5 percent reduction in the carbon intensity of fuels is required in 2012.
Sonoco, a global packaging products provider, has ended its three-year quest for sustainable energy production at its facility in Hartsville, S.C. The result is a $75 million biomass boiler.
The U.S. DOE has given its Final Acceptance Certificate to Ameresco Inc. for the largest single-source energy performance savings contract (EPSC) underway for the federal government.
New Energy Farms has announced three separate events in the U.S., Canada and the U.K. that will provide landowners, farmers and end users with a chance to learn more about the different energy crops the company grows.
Lawmakers and opinion leaders in Washington now have access to first-hand accounts from the C-Suite of the nation's top advanced biofuel companies.
A pilot-scale cellulosic ethanol plant located in Ornskoldsvik, Sweden, is headed for shutdown after the first quarter of 2012 due to short funds, SEKAB E-Technology announced.
The anticipated saturation of the U.S. ethanol market could have interesting implications for the future renewable identification numbers (RINs) market, according to a report recently released by Hart Energy.
BTEC's final webinar in a 14-part series showed varying wood bioenergy market predictions, but all speakers pointed to growing pellet markets.
California has modified the structure of its renewable portfolio standard to establish content categories for electricity source procurement, and set limitations of procurement in each category for the three compliance periods.
The fate of the EPA Regulatory Relief Act will have to wait, as it was stripped from payroll tax cut extension legislation this week.
Waste Management and officials from Will County have commissioned a landfill gas-to-energy plant at the Prairie View Recycling and Disposal Facility outside of Wilmington in northeastern Illinois.
Exxon Mobil Corp.'s 2012 Outlook for Energy says electricity is the energy sector with the largest global demand, and by 2040, 15 percent of the world's electricity will be generated by renewable fuels, including biomass.
On Dec. 14, the U.K.'s Advertising Standards Authority issued adjudication in favor of Shell International Ltd. in response to a complaint filed against one of its advertisements. The complaint challenged CO2 emission reduction claims made by Shell.
Abengoa Bioenergy plans to halt ethanol production at its 30 MMgy plant in Portales, N.M., and its 25 MMgy plant in Colwich, Kan. The move is temporary and due to current market conditions, according to the company.
USGC trip shows potential for corn, DDGS in Vietnam
By U.S. Grains Council
December 20, 2011
The rapidly increasing entrepreneurial spirit witnessed in Vietnam encouraged participants of the U.S. Grains Council's Corn Mission about future opportunities for U.S. agricultural products.
A University of Iowa renewable energy project is using woody biomass to stimulate the local economy.
Denmark-based CLC bio, a bioinformatics sequence analysis software provider, recently announced that Sapphire Energy Inc. has installed a custom-made bioinformatics solution from CLC bio in its San Diego-based research center.
Air New Zealand has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Sydney, Australia-based Licella Pty Ltd. to examine the development and commercialization of a process to convert woody biomass into biofuel.
The EC recently released a long-sighted roadmap for the continent's decarbonization plan, exploring possible scenarios that could be deployed to meet the EU's ambitious goal of reducing GHG emissions to 80 to 95 percent below 1990 levels by 2050.
The Algal Biomass Organization has engaged the Washington, D.C. office of the global law firm, K&L Gates LLP. The firm will help ABO in its efforts to educate federal policy makers about the growing potential for algae biofuels.
Neste Oil celebrated the grand opening of its renewable diesel production facility at the Port of Rotterdam, The Netherlands and announced plans to build a pilot plant at its Porvoo refinery to produce waste-based microbial oil for fuels production.
Agilyx Corp. has secured $25 million in a Series C round of funding led by new lead investor Keating Capital that will provide working capital to fund marketing, business development, deployment of new projects, as well as aid in scale-up efforts.
Green Plains Renewable Energy Inc. continues to follow through with its intent to expand its ethanol and agribusiness segments — most recently by executing an agreement to acquire grain elevator assets in Nebraska.
Study exposes sugarcane ethanol's environmental flaw
December 19, 2011
The effects of burning sugarcane fields have been monitored by satellites, but California researchers found that the small spatial scale of individual fires has led to an incorrect assessment of the environmental impact posed by burning cropland.
Syngenta collaborates with Quad County to use Enogen in 2012
By Syngenta
December 19, 2011
Syngenta in North America announced that it has signed a commercial agreement with Quad County Corn Processors to supply the Iowa ethanol plant with Enogen grain in 2012.
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