Today in Biofuels: Chevron, Weyerhaeuser form next-gen biofuels venture; EPA’s vast powers under Energy Act; new Land Rover biodiesel-electric hybrid concept

March 3, 2008

Top Story:

In Washington State, timber colossus Weyerhaeuser and Chevron announced a new partnership to explore cellulosic ethanol technologies. The new joint venture, Clearlight, will be based near Seattle at Weyerhaeuser’s offices, and will have up to 40 staff working on the research effort to develop non-foodstock based, sustainable business model from “forest to fuel”. Specifically, the partner referred to the difficult challenges in harvesting biomass, converting to biofuels, and distributing to the market. The joint venture is an outcome of a research partnership between the two companies that commenced in the spring of last year.

Producer News:

In Oregon, the Port of Umatilla has received a $500,000 grant towards a 5 Mgy biodiesel plant. It was not disclosed when the new plant would open, nor was a site selected. Spokesmen for the Port said that it was possible that Sequential Pacific Biodiesel of Salem might establish a plant with feedstock provided by canola farm co-ops such as Pendleton Grain Growers and Madison Farms of Echo.

In New York, energy analysts at Piper Jaffray raised the possibility of a looming ethanol shakeout, as Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co projected an increase in corn prices from $3.75 to $5.00 per bushel. Analysts suggested that the ethanol squeeze could be felt for two years while the industry installs ethanol pipelines to bring the product to the Southwest. Reports circulated that Archer Daniels Midland would not step into the market and snatch up the smaller players, hoping that liquidations would ease the pressure on corn prices and ethanol margins.

In Missouri, John Deere announced a new ethanol delivery contract insurance that would supplement existing crop coverage for farmers. John Deere executives said that the new insurance coverage would fill a gap between traditional crop-failure insurance and the terms and conditions associated with ethanol delivery.Â They said it would permit farmers to make higher delivery commitments for ethanol production.

International News:

In Zimbabwe, the government is attempting to revive the sugar ethanol industry on an emergency basis to combat the effects of energy price increases. Sugar cane ethanol operations were generally shut down in 1992 throughout the country by the Mugabe government, but the Energy and Power Minister said that Zimbabwe expected to produce 6.6 Mgy in 2008. Before the ban on ethanol, Triangle Limited had produced 10.6 Mgy of ethanol annually, but this had been scaled back to nominal production for industrial uses.

In Vietnam, Pantech Group Holdings said that they would establish their first international ethanol plant in a joint venture with Petroleum Technical Services. Following an investment of up to $4 million, the partners expect to produce up to 5 Mgy of ethanol. The location and construction timetable for the new plant were not disclosed.

In Canada, the federal government announced a program to stimulate the use and awareness of E85 ethanol, while Natural Resources released Canada’s GHGenius study, showing that net CO2 emissions from vehicles using E85 ethanol were 47-55% lower than conventional gasoline.

In the Philippines, local reports say that the country will have to import biofuels to meet targets, due to an internal shortage. Projected imports from the United States, China or India were not disclosed. The Philippines passed the Biofuels Act in 2006, which called for a minimum E5 standard in 2009, and an E10 standard inÂ 2011. 1 percent locally-sourced biodiesel. The additive requirement will be increased to 2 percent in 2010. Gasoline, on the other hand, is required to have a mix of 5 percent locally-sourced bioethanol in 2009, which will be hiked to 10 percent in 2011.

Research News:

In South Dakota, Poet said that its BPX process is producing up to 3.0 gallons of fuel per average bushel of corn, up 10 percent from previous industry standard of 2.7 gallons per acre. If the Poet process were spread out across all corn acreage in the country, the US would put back 800 million bushels of corn towards alleviating food price concerns. Professor Jay-lin Jane, a carbohydrate professor at Iowa State, has been researching specific corn strains to find the most effective in terms of yield.

Policy and Policymakers:

In Washington, the Environmental Protection Agency will have vastly expanded powers to determine crop policy and the rate of biofuels expansion, under the Energy Independence and Security Act signed into law last month. The EPA may waive or reduce annual targets prescribed under the ACt, and determine which fuels qualify as “advanced biofuels” that count towards the overall goal of 36 billion gallons of renewable fuel blended with gasoline annually.

Under the Act, the EPA, states, or refiners can petition the EPA to waive ethanol blending requirement, or the EPA may alter the timetable itself. EPA officials have commenced design of their analytic framework, and at the heart of their work is a determination of land-use models to use in mapping the impact of ethanol production on greenhouse gas emissions. The EPA also will have final say in allowing higher blends of ethanol such as as E20 and E30 to be adopted as state minimums.

In Florida, the president of the Associated Industries of Florida said that Governor Charlie Crist’s plan for biofuels is “too much, too soon,” and called for a state cost benefit analysis to be completed before the Governor’s plans are implemented. The Governor called for $200 million in incentives for solar, wind and biofuels, a biodiesel mandate, a reduction in utility energy by 20 percent and a 45 percent increase in building efficiency by 2018.

Consumer and Fleet News:

Land Rover will debut a new version of the LRX concept car that will achieve up to 60 miles per gallon and extremely low emissions ratings of 1 tonne of CO2 per five thousand miles.Â The electric-diesel hybrid is in the concept stage but is expected to be a springboard for a new Land Rover model.

Financial News:

The Biofuels Digest Indexâ„¢ (BDI), a basket of public biofuels stocks, celebrated Leap Day with a 3 percent plunge to a close of 125.75. Leading the plungers among diversified agribusiness was Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), which dropped 2.95 percent to $45.10. Among mid caps, Aventine Renewable Energy (AVR) tanked 8.79 percent to $6.42, erasing slight gains from earlier in the week. Among small caps, MGP Ingredients tumbledÂ (MGPI) 7.23 percent to reach $6.42.Â For the day, declines led advances 3 to 1.

Land Rover biodiesel-electric hybrid LRX concept achieves 60 mpg, 1 tonne CO2 per 5,000 miles

Land Rover will debut a new version of the LRX concept car that will achieve up to 60 miles per gallon and extremely low emissions ratings of 1 tonne of CO2 per five thousand miles. the electric-dies...

Chevron, Weyerhaeuser form Clearlight joint venture to develop advanced biofuels, sustainable from “forest to fuel”

In Washington State, timber colossus Weyerhaeuser and Chevron announced a joint venture to explore cellulosic ethanol technologies. The new joint venture, Clearlight, will be based near Seattle at Wey...

General Motors debuts flex-fuel Hummer concept car

In Michigan, General Motors introduced a "green" Hummer HX, 6-cylinder concept car which is compatible with E85. GM is introducing 16 new hybrid or flex-fuel models over the next four years. Also ...

Chrysler debuts diesel-electric hybrid Jeep concept car with 400 mile range at 110 miles per gallon

In Michigan, Chrysler unveiled a hybrid diesel-electric Jeep Renegade dune buggy, one of three alternative-fuel concept cars it presented at the International Auto Show. The Jeep can travel 40 miles ...

Aussie researchers develop ethanol-electric plug-in hybrid prototype

In Australia, researchers at the University of Tasmania have constructed a prototype, plug-in hybrid ethanol-electric vehicle. The prototype used a Toyota Corolla body, and follow up from a successful...

BMW mulling over the establishment of a new “green” brand to market its eco-friendly vehicles

BMW may introduce a new "green" brand, after concluding that the BMW brand is too closely identified with its "Ultimate Driving Machine" image to encompass an eco-friendly brand message. The company i...

Written by Jim Lane · Filed Under The Daily Biofuel Summary