Gulf Coast Energy receives first wood waste shipments from Hoover, AL, for cellulosic ethanol production

In Alabama, the city of Hoover has delivered 8 tons of wood waste to Gulf Coast Energy in a test of cellulosic ethanol production. The wood waste would have been headed for city landfills. Neighboring cities have indicated an interest in establishing a regional cooperative to collect wood waste for conversion to biofuel.

Waste-to-ethanol background

In Missouri, Clean Tech Biofuels announced the acquisition of Biomass North America, including technology licenses related to the production of cellulosic biomass from municipal solid waste that are currently in use in Australia. The company said that it would pursue a project in Illinois at a site owned by an undisclosed major shareholder in Biomass North America, producing cellulosic biomass that will be co-fired with coal for electricity production. Clean Tech’s research has shown that it’s carbon-neutral biomass has 75 percent of the energy of coal.

In Nevada, Fulcrum BioEnergy announced that they will launch their 10 Mgy Sierra BioFuels municipal solid waste to ethanol plant east of Reno. The plant is expected to process 90,000 tons per year of municipal solid waste and cost $120 million.

Diversified Ethanol announced that it would complete its first waste-to-ethanol plant in Dade City, FL, rather than Pomona, California as previously announced under its feedstock agreement with Master Recycling. The company said that faster-tracking in permitting, plus more favorable construction costs led to the decision to complete the Florida plant first.

Diversified Ethanol designs and builds small scale, modular ethanol plants using brewery, beverage or food processing waste.  The company’s Butterfield system includes a proprietary water recycling system reducing water use by up to 85%.

The company announced that earlier this month that it would construct a 1.5 Mgy ethanol plant near Omaha, using waste byproducts from tortillas, bread, and cereal production.

• Syntec Biofuel has announced that it would drop an upfront $250,000 licensing fee for its waste-to-ethanol process, in a bid to attract business from to corn-based ethanol producers hit by soaring feedstock prices.

• In Indiana, the Post-Tribune is reporting that a proposed Lake County garbage-to-ethanol facility will release highly toxic chlorinated dioxins.

The other competitor, Indiana Ethanol Power, has commenced contract negotiations with Lake County Solid Waste Management District for its proposed 20 Mgy waste-to-ethanol plant.

• In New York, Masada said it is awaiting a green light from the the city council of Middletown to proceed with a 10 Mgy waste-to-ethanol plant.

• In Canada, the city of Edmonton has proposed a gasification plant for the Clover Bar landfill that will convert trash into ethanol.

• In New Jersey, a 10 Mgy corn and fruit waste ethanol plant has been proposed by New Jersey Ethanol.

• BlueFire Ethanol Fuels is ready to break ground this month on its 3.1 Mgy waste-to-ethanol plant near Lancaster, California. The company is awaiting its air permit before commencing construction, after securing additional financing to supplement a cellulosic ethanol grant from the Department of Energy received last year. The company, which plans to erect a number of waste-to-ethanol plants near landfills, has a 16.6 Mgy plant on the drawing board that would be built near Corona. Bluefire holds the exclusive North American license to employ the Arkenol Process Technology, a patented system that transforms cellulosic waste into usable ethanol.

• Idaho published a state energy assessment targeting opportunities in waste-to-ethanol. Biofuels Digest has obtained a copy of the full report and it can be downloaded here.

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