In California, bioinformatics start-up Maverix, has begun offering pipelines for RNA sequencing and ChIP sequencing analysis, SNP detection, ribosome profiling, and bisulfate sequencing, among other processes. Users can upload sequence data from a variety of organisms — human, animal, plant, virus, bacteria, and more — and access and run Maverix’s pre-configured tools on Amazon’s cloud […]
In Minnesota, Fibrominn has been fined $14,000 by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency for violating air pollution limits. The biomass company, which burns wood and turkey waste to produce electricity, has been burning treated wood whose resins can be harmful to the air. More on the story.
In California, the fermentation process used to make cordite for bullets and artillery shells during WWI could be used to better ferret sugars found in biomass. A Berkeley Lab has been able to upgrade metabolic pathways for creating transportation fuels close to theoretical yields… up to a gallon of fuel from 16 pounds of sugars […]
In Malaysia, KNM Group Bhd has delivered a winding-up petition against Mission Biofuels for USD $16M for goods sold and works carried out in a Kuantan Port plant. The project, which involved designing continuous acid conditioning and silica pretreatment methyl ester transesterification plant, was part of Mission’s development of sustainable biofuel feedstock supplies. The hearing […]
In the UK, The Guardian has posted an article on how EU biofuel policies in Indonesia affect the land there, especially in indigenous communities. The argument stems from data regarding forests being turned into palm oil plantations because of biofuel demand; however, the author notes that it is difficult to accurately estimates how much of […]
In New Jersey, Senator Frank Lautenberg, D, has applauded Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev, for his stance on climate change: “As we work with New Jersey families, business and communities to rebuild, after yet another devastating extreme weather event, it’s clearer than ever that climate change poses a direct and dangerous threat to our nation,” said Lautenberg, a member of […]
In Texas, Valero has released its quarterly financial results with a net income of $674M. That represents a $0.90 drop per share to $1.21. According to Mike Ciskowski, Valero chief financial officer, the operating loss for the ethanol segment is attributed primarily to lower gross margins. High corn prices and excess ethanol inventories squeezed the […]
In Seeking Alpha, Solazyme has been featured as a good investment in a recent article discussing their oil production. The article argues that Solazyme is often overlooked by investors, but creates a powerful product that is less vulnerable for sourcing of hard-to-find oils. The article also stresses the huge partnerships that Solazyme has managed to […]
In New York, Platts has completed its acquisition of Kingsman SA, a Swiss provider of price information and analytic for the sugar and biofuels markets. “The acquisition of Kingsman broadens Platts’ capabilities in biofuels, provides an entry to the agriculture markets, and adds widely respected skills in fundamental market analysis,” said Harold McGraw III, chairman, […]
In Spain, Abengoa is planning to resume output at its Madison, Illinois mill after stopping production last month because of poor margins. In the interim, the company performed maintenance operations on the 88 mgy plant. Christopher Standlee, a spokesman for the company, declined to say whether it’s profitable for the company to be producing fuel […]
