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No resolve for New Year

Feature

Right before the Christmas holidays the European Commission published its report on indirect land-use change (ILUC) of biofuels. The Commission concluded – after a series of stakeholder meetings, two public consultations and several economic modelling studies – that ILUC of biofuels is far from obvious and that further studying would be required. Models still uncertain ILUC is a phenomenon that... [read more]

Exercising prudence in a resurging US biodiesel market

Feature

US biodiesel production came to a virtual standstill with the expiration of the federal tax credit on 31 December 2009. Last year was a tough year in the industry by anyone’s standards. However, with the new renewable fuels standard, the extension of the biodiesel tax credit late last year, and the current price of RINS, many US biodiesel plants are now taking a serious look at restarting. As... [read more]

New life for US biodiesel industry in 2011

Feature

Much like the story of the phoenix, the US biodiesel industry has been reborn after a neardeath experience. Yet, US producers will continue to struggle due to the high costs of biodiesel compared with petroleum-based diesel and the fact that the tax credit was only extended through year end, with another extension by no means assured. Extending the Biodiesel Mixture Excise Tax credit, which pays... [read more]

Fair comparison?

Feature

A new report on the carbon intensity of crude oil in Europe highlights dramatic disparities in lifecycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of crudes produced from different oilfields, and points to significant reductions that could be achieved by infrastructure improvements, technology upgrades, and other measures. By far the largest sources of upstream emissions are natural gas flaring and tar... [read more]

flying High

Feature

More than six years ago John Plaza, now the founder and CEO of Imperium Renewables, was working as a commercial airline pilot when he began to focus on how just how much airline travel was contributing to global greenhouse gas emissions. While flying a Boeing 747 from Anchorage to Tokyo, he calculated that the amount of fuel for that one trip could power his car for 42 years. Realising the sheer... [read more]

A critical moment

Feature

With the reinstatement of the tax credit and the RFS2 gaining traction it could be a great year for biodiesel in the US, but what happens next is far from certain GreenHunter Biofuels in Grapevine, Texas – one of the US’ largest biodiesel plants – is idle and still recovering from damages sustained during Hurricane Ike in 2008. For the time being it is being used as a bulk liquid storage and... [read more]

Soyabean supply, demand and trends

Feature

There is no crystal ball, and in commodities the only certainty is uncertainty. This being said there are some compelling conclusions that can be drawn from the trends of the last 10 to 15 years. First, soyabean production has risen mostly due to an upward trend in average crop yield. Second, soyabean demand has also consistently risen in the past 10 years. Finally, the average price of soyabeans... [read more]

Insurance solutions

Feature

The majority of new energy projects are constructed on brownfield sites and the implications of current environmental legislation need to be considered. This is essentially based on liability attached to the polluter which then passes to any new owner upon acquisition of the site. Many lenders recognise that they may be drawn into pollution issues and given their interest in the land and/or... [read more]

From biomass to liquid

Feature

With a yield of up to 4,000 litres per hectare, the ability to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) by up to 90% and a resulting high quality synthetic biodiesel that can be used in today’s motor engines without modification, biomass-toliquid (BtL) is one of the most promising processes available in the fuel sector today. An alternative to fermenting vegetable oils and animal fats into... [read more]

The bigger the better?

Feature

The Netherlands is frequently referred to as the gateway to Europe and is a key trading area for the petrochemical industry. The Port of Rotterdam has an annual throughput of around 400 million tonnes and offers many options to those that choose to store liquid fuel there. It provides easy access to the UK, Swedish, German and Dutch markets. The port has been storing biofuels since the beginning... [read more]

As clean as... a tank

Feature

Biofuels storage tanks, just like any other tank storing oil or petroleum products, need to be maintained and cleaned on a regular basis in order to ensure maximum lifespan. There are a number of reasons why a biofuels storage tank may need to be cleaned: 1. Fouling: without regular cleaning fouling will build up in the tank and contaminate the product. This build-up consists of water, microbial... [read more]