POET receives 2008 Biofuels Digest Achievement Award in First-generation Ethanol
[BIOFUELS DIGEST NEWSWIRE] MIAMI, FL — Biofuels Digest announced this morning that POET received the 2008 Biofuels Digest Achievement Award for Cellulosic Ethanol.
The award was given in recognition of achieving high yields and reduced energy inputs in ethanol production through its BPX technology.
“Though POET has become a leader in advanced biofuels as well as first-generation, they have clearly set a new standard in first-generation ethanol,” said Biofuels Digest editor Jim Lane. “In a turbulent year marked by hedging crises, bankruptcies, and the food vs. fuel crisis, POET has been quietly expanding capacity, increasing yields, and reducing energy use. That’s proven to be the winning formula in the marketplace as well as in these awards,” Lane added.
In October, POET held a grand opening for its 65 Mgy corn ethanol plant in Marion. The $130 million project is POET’s 26th plant, and utilizes POET’s BPX process to reduce energy needs for fermentation by 8 to 15 percent compared to other ethanol production processes.
POET is currently finalizing construction at its pilot-scale cellulosic ethanol plant in Scotland, SD, and will commence construction next year at its commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol plant in Emmetsburg, IA. Those plants will utilize corn cobs as feedstock. The Emmetsburg, IA plant, jointly funded with the US Department of Energy, will produce 125 Mgy including 25 Mgy from corn fiber and cobs. The plant, which will be operational in 2011, will pay between $30 and $60 per ton of cobs and fiber for the 850 tons per day required by the plant. The cob price equates to a price of $0.63 and $1.26 per bushel, compared to more than $5 per bushel for corn.
In September, POET opened its third corn ethanol refinery in the state, a 65 Mgy plant in North Manchester. The facility utilizes the company’s patented BPX process that reduces energy consumption by up to 15 percent compared to conventional ethanol production, and features a thermal oxidizer that will eliminate up to 99.9 percent of air emissions. The plant, which cost $130 million to construct, will produce 178,000 tons of “Dakota Gold” branded distillers grains for livestock feed.
Several sources reported in August that POET will construct a 115 Mgy plant in West Lebanon. The $260 million corn ethanol plant would be the fourth owned by POET in Indiana, complementing facilities in Jay, Madison and Wabash counties. Construction is scheduled, according to reports, to begin in 2009 and would be located at a 250-acre site at the intersection of state highways 62, 263 and 28.
The EPA has awarded the Energy Star designation for energy efficiency to POET Biorefining in Ashton, Iowa, and East Kansas Agri-Energy in Garnett, Kansas. The 56 Mgy POET corn ethanol plant in Ashton, which opened in 2005, is equipped with combined heat and power (CHP) that generates up to 7.2 MW of electricity and requires 16 percent less fuel than a conventional process. The process saves 18,900 tons of CO2 emissions per year. The East Kansas Agri-Energy dry mill ethanol plant in Garnett, Kan., opened in 2005. The steam turbine system uses 23 percent less fuel than conventional thermal generation and purchased electricity. The plant reduces carbon dioxide emissions by an estimated 14,500 tons per year.
In a rare step-aside from its relentless focus on expansion, last May POET canceled the development of a 65 Mgy corn ethanol plant in Glenville. MN over permitting delays.
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