General Motors announces investment in Khosla-backed cellulosic ethanol venture; $1 per gallon ethanol is goal

General Motors announced that it will invest in Coskata, a cellulosic ethanol venture backed by Vinod Khosla.  GM is reported to have made the move in part to convince its customers that the company aims to be the leader among car makers in developing environmentally friendly vehicles. Coskata aims to produce 100 Mgy of cellulosic ethanol based on five bacteria strains developed at research labs in Oklahoma. The company will produce 40,000 gallons of fuel on a pilot basis, using woodchips from a co-located chemical plant as feedstock. The company aims to produce fuel for $1 per gallon.

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