We heard five trends during the first two days of the BIO World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology this year. 1. Methane. 2. Low-cost sugars. 3. Chemicals. 4. Opportunities in the C4 platform – anything from isobutanol to BDO and butadiene. 5. Financing challenges, especially for first commercial plants Our 6 favorite quotes? 1. “The trends […]
The Biofuels Digest Index, an index of publicly traded biofuels stocks, jumped 2.14 percent to 73.94 as advanced biofuels equities made strong gains. For the day, Gevo (GEVO) soared 19.65 percent to $2.07, while Solazyme (SZYM) escalated 3.35 percent to $12.04 . Among other equities, BioAmber (BIOA) fell 2.88 percent to $7.75. Overall, advanced led […]
In the US, noted energy analysts have been updating their views on Gevo following the company’s announcement that the Luverne plant has resumed operations. “After a 5-6 month hiatus to combat contamination-related production issues,” wrote Piper Jaffray’s Mike Ritzenthaler, ” the phased re-start of Luverne has surpassed its most difficult and important hurdle in our […]
In California, SGB has identified fungal rust-resistant hybrids of Jatropha curcas through its global network of field trials. Identification of the trait provides a critical defensive attribute to ensure plant health and yield preservation for the non-food energy crop. At multiple JMax Knowledge Center trial sites, several of SGB’s high yielding hybrids manifest a range […]
In Brazil, GranBio provided the Digest with a gallery of photos updating readers on the state of development of the company’s signature Alagoas project and breeding station there. The plant, first of its type in the Southern Hemisphere, should begin to operate early in 2014. The unit, which is being built in São Miguel dos […]
In the UK, Gasrec has teamed up with global heavy-duty truck manufacturer Volvo Trucks to co-operate commercially and technically to increase the availability and promote the use of gas vehicles in the UK. Gasrec is Europe’s largest supplier of Bio-LNG; a blend of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and liquid biomethane (LBM). LBM is a natural, […]
In Indonesia, Brazil and Indonesia said that among the areas they have hot-targeted for bil-laterl co-operaiton is the development of biofuels. Brazilian Deputy Foreign Minister Maria Edileuza Fontenele Reis, speaking with The Jakarta Post and Antara news agency at the sixth Foreign Ministers Meeting of the Forum for East Asia-Latin America Cooperation (FEALAC) in Bali, […]
In Italy, Chemtex and Codexis announced the successful scale-up in the production of CodeXol detergent alcohols using cellulosic sugars. The scale-up was achieved at a 1,500 liter demonstration facility at Chemtex’s R&D complex in Tortona, Italy and is a key milestone in the ongoing effort initiated by the two companies to develop a fully integrated […]
In Canada, Xylitol Canada announced they have completed pilot demonstration of its cellulosic xylose process. The successful three month campaign proved out critical process and economic metrics needed to advance into commercial scale detailed engineering. The recently completed trial builds on previously completed pilot scale work by integrating the Xylitol Canada process from end-to-end in […]
Today on Twitter: guardianscience Is the future of biofuels a pond of algae in every backyard? | Lou del Bello Green_Europe Civil Society open letter signed by 112 organisations worldwide condemns #EU #biofuels policy Sean_OHanlon #Algae to #Biofuels from Dairy waste being explored in New Mexico
