Category: Top Stories

New bioenergy financing mooted, as MLP legislation readied for US Senate

New bioenergy financing mooted, as MLP legislation readied for US Senate

June 7, 2012 |

In Washington, Senator Chris Coons (D-DE) is expected to introduce legislation shortly to allow master limited partnerships in renewable energy, according to a report in the New York Times. When the legislation is introduced, it will have bipartisan support in the Senate, although no action is expected on the Senate floor this year on the […]

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Mill, Baby, Mill

Mill, Baby, Mill

June 6, 2012 |

In-field bioprocessing? Dramatically higher plant oil production? R&D breakthroughs offer new paths to victory for Millers vs Drillers. If you haven’t been getting most of your information on the Renewable Fuel Standard from the Grocers Manufacturing Association, you’ll note that biofuels manufacturers have been able to deliver all the fuel called for in the mandate, […]

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California – The Not-So-Golden State

California – The Not-So-Golden State

June 6, 2012 |

By James L. Stewart, Chairman of the Board, BioEnergy Producers Association For the eighth consecutive year, Chief Executive.net has ranked California as the worst state in the nation in which to do business, and its legislature’s historic attitude toward gasification-related advanced biofuels, biobased chemicals and electricity production is a stunning example of the reason why. […]

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Aviation biofuels: which airlines are doing what, with whom?

Aviation biofuels: which airlines are doing what, with whom?

June 5, 2012 |

Azul Airlines announces plans to test Amyris sugarcane-based jet fuel; more than 30 airlines now trialing, deploying biofuels – but who’s doing what, exactly? In Brazil, Azul Airlines announced that Amyris’s innovative renewable jet fuel sourced from Brazilian sugarcane has passed all required testing and will be used during a demonstration flight on an Azul […]

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Yecch, ptooey! The 13 oddest and strangest biofuels feedstocks

Yecch, ptooey! The 13 oddest and strangest biofuels feedstocks

June 4, 2012 |

Nothing new under the sun? Potrzebie! These biofuels feedstocks set records for ingenuity, sheer craziness and a liberal dose of “what, me worry?” Most of the stories we write at the Digest on the subject of biofuels feedstocks fall into the well-established realms of normal. But every once in a while, a feedstock emerges that is […]

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A Tale of Two Energy Cities

A Tale of Two Energy Cities

June 1, 2012 |

A major plant opening by Novozymes in Nebraska and a project announcement from ExxonMobil in Texas, highlight the opportunities and challenges for industrial biotechnology It was, fittingly, one of those “chamber of commerce” sunny late spring days in Blair, Nebraska, when the VIP-laden cars and buses rolled in to a town just north of Omaha […]

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California Energy Commission awards $35M for alternative fuels development

California Energy Commission awards $35M for alternative fuels development

June 1, 2012 |

In California, the state Energy Commission today unanimously approved funding of $35,031,310 to projects that will accelerate the development of green fuels and technology in California. The awards are provided through the Energy Commission’s Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program. The program, created by Assembly Bill 118, provides approximately $100 million annually to […]

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US Senate group starts up “seed to wheel” review of US Renewable Fuel Standard

US Senate group starts up “seed to wheel” review of US Renewable Fuel Standard

May 30, 2012 |

The US Renewable Fuel Standard: Time to Add, Modify or Delete? In Washington, staff members working for least eight US Senators will join a study group aimed at a “seed-to-wheel examination of the US Renewable Fuel Standard,” the Digest has learned. The goal of the study group is to examine which provisions are working, and […]

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Sorghum goes epic, or is that EPEC? A primer on biofuels’ underdog feedstock

Sorghum goes epic, or is that EPEC? A primer on biofuels’ underdog feedstock

May 30, 2012 |

The Underdog feedstock is getting Big Mo’, getting’ its due, with sorghum-based ethanol making the grade under optimal conditions as an advanced biofuel pathway, and EPEC landing new investment. What’s up? What’s next? New pathways, plus country-by-country yield data. Sorghum. It’s a feedstock right out the pages of the old South —  sorghum syrup served […]

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Gevo’s Progress: The 10-Minute Update

Gevo’s Progress: The 10-Minute Update

May 28, 2012 |

What magic is in the kool-aid, at biofuels’ newest commercial scale-up success story? Gevo CEO Pat Gruber adds that “Latitude to Learn” is key to success for advanced fermentation companies. You can think of him as the guiding technological force behind Cargill’s NatureWorks, the charismatic CEO of advanced biofuels darling Gevo, or as the winner […]

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