The ethanol signals from Washington DC are more inexplicably mixed than cocktails with names like Sex on the Beach. Let’s parse through the wigwagging over the future of American biofuels supply and demand — ethanol and otherwise. Fortunately: Trump backs year-round E15 ethanol blends In Washington, President Trump endorsed year-round E15 ethanol availability as an […]
In California, Aemetis has secured the $158 million loan guarantee from the USDA it has been seeking to help fund its proposed cellulosic ethanol after passing the last of the required hurdles in early March. The plant will use orchard wood waste as feedstock and could open as soon as 2019. As a result of […]
In the UK, after more than four months offline due to unfavorable economics, Vivergo has brought its ethanol plant in Hull back online thanks to the government exploring the blending of ethanol at 9.75% by 2020. The company said the only way it will ever recuperate its investment is if there is an E10 policy […]
In Brazil, Platts reports that the early start to the sugarcane crush saw ethanol production jump 79% on the year during the second half of March at 445 million liters as mills sought to fill the ethanol supply gap that is currently being filled by imports form the US. Hydrous production was also 82% higher […]
In South Dakota, at long last and after several false starts, Ringneck Energy in Onida is set to begin producing ethanol by year’s end thanks to good weather in December that allowed construction to progress faster than expected. Delays in starting construction due to regulatory hurdles and legal challenges allowed time to upgrade designs that […]
In Washington, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it has approved the State of North Dakota’s request to implement and enforce its own Class VI Underground Injection Control (UIC) program, commonly referred to as Carbon Capture and Storage. This marks the first time any state has received primacy for Class VI UIC wells, which […]
In Brazil, the most recent biodiesel auction held on Tuesday to supply the domestic B10 mandate during May and June sold 928.2 million liters from more than 1 billion liters offered by 38 producers. Of the total volume offered for sale, 99.4% carried the social seal. Total income generated at the auction held by the […]
In Massachusetts, researchers from Worcester Polytechnic Institute have determined that “red mud,” a waste product of aluminum refining, boosts energy recovery from food waste to 80% from the average 25% recovery using hydrothermal liquefaction or the 40% recently achieved using a metal oxide catalyst called cerium-zirconia. With a third of the food produced annually on […]
In Washington, Reuters reports that President Trump will leave the issue of the Renewable Fuel Standard alone for the next three months in an effort to calm farmers concerned about the impact reduced demand for ethanol would have on rural communities, compounded with expected negative repercussions resulting from the trade war with China. The administrator […]
By Mark Warner, PE, Founder, Warner Advisors LLC Special to The Digest Funding for early stage advanced biotechnology is ramping up and companies commercializing fermentation-based technologies are faced with the decision to either build their own demonstration-scale facility or utilize existing contract manufacturing organizations (CMOs). There are clear benefits of using CMOs, however conducting a successful […]
