In Brazil, Reuters reports UNICA data shows the sugarcane crush is catching up to last year despite delays in starting the season. Data for H1 May shows that cane crushed was just 3% lower than during the same period last year with ethanol production nearly flat at 1.81 billion liters, down only 0.6% on the […]
In California, the San Francisco Chronicle newspaper reports a multiagency report shows the 2019 explosions of the ethanol storage tanks at the NuStar facility at in Crockett was a likely the result of poorly grounded equipment, causing a “static discharge or ignition charge”. The tanks held more than 250,000 gallons of ethanol and created a […]
In Lao, Kyuden Mira Energy plans to buy a 20% stake in the biomass pellet project under development by Siphandone Ratch-Lao Co., a Thai-Laotian joint venture, in an effort to secure more pellets for power generation in Japan. The new facility in Champasak Province, southern Laos is set to produce 100,000 metric tons of pellets […]
In the UK, the government has selected 24 projects for the first phase of its R&D challenge to find direct air carbon capture and greenhouse gas removal technologies, many of which are bio-based. From those projects, a select few will go on to the second phase where pilot projects will be implemented to test and […]
In Pennsylvania, Reuters reports that Delta Air Lines has stopped buying RINs despite its growing $346 million liability for Monroe Energy—double its 2020 RIN purchase—because prices for credits are soaring and it hopes it can convince the Biden Administration to reduce its obligations. Merchant refiners like Monroe and others are seeking a temporary waiver form […]
In the UK, Farmers Weekly reports that even though the UK has left the European Union, its farmers will still have to comply with tighter regulations on mass balance figures from June 1 as part of the Red Tractor sustainability program to comply with biofuels sustainability rules. The UK market is expected to mirror EU […]
In China, environmentally friendly energy-conversion technologies, such as fuel cells and water-splitting systems, have attracted considerable attention. However, application of these electrochemical devices is hindered due to the high energy barrier of oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Single-atom catalysts (SACs) are the most promising candidates for ORR and HER catalysis. However, […]
In Washington, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-NE) in introducing the bipartisan RFS Integrity Act of 2021. This legislation would provide more certainty for rural America by bringing transparency and predictability to the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) small refinery exemption process. The bill would require small refineries to […]
In the Netherlands, Eurotank Amsterdam (ETA, part of VTTI) is investing in the conversion of its gas oil tanks, making them suitable for storing biofuels, mixed biofuels and hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO), following a successful pilot project. The project will realize a total capacity of 75,000 cubic meters and the first phase will be commissioned […]
In France, Technip has been awarded two contracts by Neste for work on the development of their renewables production platform in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, as part of the existing Partnership Agreement between Neste and Technip Energies. The first contract covers Engineering, Procurement services and Construction management (EPCM) for the modification of Neste’s existing renewables production […]
