Category: Top Stories

REG to acquire Syntroleum assets in $40M stock deal; to enter renewable diesel, at scale

REG to acquire Syntroleum assets in $40M stock deal; to enter renewable diesel, at scale

December 17, 2013 |

In Oklahoma, and Iowa, Renewable Energy Group announced that it would acquire substantially all of the assets of Syntroleum Corporation, and assume substantially all of the material liabilities of Syntroleum, for 3,796,000 shares of REG common stock worth $40.08 million at today’s market close. The purchase price subject to reduction in the event that the […]

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The 100 Top People in Bioenergy 2013-14: Voting opens

The 100 Top People in Bioenergy 2013-14: Voting opens

December 16, 2013 |

In Florida, Biofuels Digest announced the opening of voting for the 2013-14 Top 100 People in Bioenergy. In all, more than 250 company executives, trade association leaders, policymakers and researchers around the world are on the ballot — and more than 450 people (including write-ins) are expected to receive support from Digest readers and the […]

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Help, I’ve Fallen and My Enterprise Can’t Get Up: Goldilocks, right-sizing and synth-bio

Help, I’ve Fallen and My Enterprise Can’t Get Up: Goldilocks, right-sizing and synth-bio

December 15, 2013 |

The story of Pareto Biotechnologies, RuBisCo, the pesky failures of evolution, and help for those who have fallen and can’t get up, via a right-sized approach. Not too high a goal, not too low. Not too much reinvention of the genetic code. Not too little. Will Pareto’s approach be “just right”? The odds are good […]

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A Tale of Two Californians

A Tale of Two Californians

December 13, 2013 |

As Senator Barbara Boxer nixes action on Renewable Fuel Standard reform legislation through the Environment and Public Works committee, Senator Dianne Feinstein co-sponsors a bill to strip corn ethanol out of the RFS altogether. Just as the EPA issues a report showing that the US is turning the corner on reducing dependency on imported oil. […]

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DOE launches new $8B loan guarantee program, with biomass/hydrocarbon fuels blend option

DOE launches new $8B loan guarantee program, with biomass/hydrocarbon fuels blend option

December 13, 2013 |

In Washington, the US Department of Energy Loan Program Office (DOE) has announced the Final Advanced Fossil Energy Projects Solicitation, which is a new $8 billion loan guarantee program under Section 1703 of Title XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.  The Solicitation would work also with a biomass/hydrocarbon fuels blend according to DOE. […]

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From the Salad Days of Sugar to the Golden Days of Gas

From the Salad Days of Sugar to the Golden Days of Gas

December 11, 2013 |

Traveling through the seasons with Calysta Energy chairman and CEO Alan Shaw, from the summer of IPOs with Codexis — and now back into springtime, courtesy of a technology that plays cheap natural gas. For eight o’clock in the morning on the last day of a long BIO Pac Rim conference, Alan Shaw was looking […]

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USDA, US Navy unveil Farm to Fleet program: Navy “open for business” as shift to biofuels blends begins

USDA, US Navy unveil Farm to Fleet program: Navy “open for business” as shift to biofuels blends begins

December 11, 2013 |

In Washington, US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and Navy Secretary Ray Mabus unveiled the “Farm to Fleet” program, through which the Navy will begin to add biofuels into its regular domestic purchases of approximately 77 million gallons of jet fuel (JP-5) and marine diesel (F-76) each year. Initial fuel contracts will be awarded in 2015, […]

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Buzzing at BIO’s Pac Rim: The industry chatter

Buzzing at BIO’s Pac Rim: The industry chatter

December 11, 2013 |

While the parade of presentations, posters and keynote addresses went on in the main hall and the breakout rooms — as usual, in the hallways, over coffees or drinks, there was often a completely different set of subjects on the minds of delegates. What happened with KiOR? There was a tremendous buzz about the sudden […]

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Heard on the Floor at Bio Pac Rim: Sapphire Energy, Philipps 66, Monsanto, Novozymes, Braskem and Genomatica unveil key tie-ups

Heard on the Floor at Bio Pac Rim: Sapphire Energy, Philipps 66, Monsanto, Novozymes, Braskem and Genomatica unveil key tie-ups

December 11, 2013 |

Three Hot 30 / Hot 50 companies partner with giants in agriculture, chemicals and petroleum. In California, three major tie-ups between top-ranked developing bioeconomy darlings and old-line giants were the buzz on the second day of BIO’s annual Pac-Rim event in San Diego. Just after word about Sapphire Energy and Philipps 66’s tie-up was announced, […]

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The Bio-Buzz: Heard on the Floor at Bio Pac Rim

The Bio-Buzz: Heard on the Floor at Bio Pac Rim

December 10, 2013 |

As the industrial biotechnology industry descends on the city where it can be safely said to have a home-court advantage, here’s what’s got people buzzing at BIO’s Pac Rim annual Summit. In California, 400 industry leaders, a record for this event, are gathered in San Diego this week for BIO’s Pac Rim Summit, which has […]

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