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Date Published:
04 January 2010

Volume 3, Issue 10


Feedstocks across the EU: cereals still preferred

Feature
In 2008 the EU produced around 2.8 billion litres of fuel ethanol, which represents a growth of roughly 58% compared to the previous year. The major share of this was distilled from cereals1 that account for 1.79 billion litres or almost 63% of the total ethanol feedstock. Among the different grains used for ethanol production wheat is still one of the most important cereals with a share of 28%... [read more]

Senate gridlock

Feature
It was a tough 2009 for the US biodiesel industry, beset with regulatory delay and uncertainty, lost imports due to anti-dumping tariffs, high feedstock costs and constricted demand by what has been called the Great Recession, echoing back to the worst economic contraction in the US since the Great Depression in the 1930s. Bankruptcies plagued the industry early in the year, while an anticipated... [read more]

EPA stays on the fence

Feature
The US ethanol industry was expecting to hear news this month on whether it would see ethanol blend rates rise from E10 to E15, but the EPA has now delayed this decision until mid-2010. The EPA says it has postponed making the decision based on a pending study on ethanol’s effects on engines, but has indicated that it may eventually approve the fuel for newer vehicles. The ethanol sector is... [read more]

Third time lucky?

Feature
At the moment USproduced biodiesel qualifies for a $1.00 (€0.70) per gallon excise tax credit, but this is set to expire on 31 December 2009. The industry is pushing for a five year tax extension that would also alter the credit from a production excise credit to a producer credit, but it is now clear this will not be voted on this year. A one year extension does, however, look likely as the US... [read more]

Staying positive

Feature
China is renown for being cautious when it comes to biofuels. With 20% of the world’s population to feed, diverting foodcrops to fuel production has been an intensely controversial issue. So much so that in June 2007 China’s State Council halted the use of grain crops for ethanol production, limiting biofuel development to non-grain energy crops. However as the world’s largest emitter of... [read more]

Moving to Malaysia

Feature
The unique formula of coinciding a conference on the biofuels sector in Asia with one on the storage terminal industry worked well and attracted a wide variety of delegates such as traders, storage operators, producers, regulators and investors. These came from 30 different countries, many from southeast Asia but also from as far as Australia, Ukraine, Israel and Canada. The Asia market for... [read more]

Size matters

Feature
Biofuel use has grown at a modest pace in China and northern Asia over the past year due to a shortage of feedstock materials and a lack of support from oil companies in several markets. Although governments are supporting research to develop large scale long term production to reduce oil consumption and promote sustainable energy development, state support generally remains patchy while... [read more]

Bioenergy plant list

Feature
While other continents focus on crops like corn, sugarcane, rapeseed or soyabean north Asia’s abundant and fertile land is home to promising non-edible feedstocks. The most commonly-used feedstocks are jatropha and cassava, leading to new investment and infrastructure in the region. In a list compiled by Biofuels International nearly half of the new plants use second-generation feedstocks to... [read more]

Partner or departure?

Feature
It is the world’s big green dream team – a major oil and gas producer partnering with a biotechnology company producing renewable fuels, which will eventually edge dirty fossil fuels out of the market. The big names signing up to the green sheet include BP, Total, Petrobras, ExxonMobil and Shell, which spoke too soon in 2005 when it said commercial production of biomass to liquid (BTL) would take... [read more]

Effective biofuel filtration

Feature
In 1998, vehicle engine manufacturers embarked on an introduction of a Worldwide Fuel Charter in an attempt to set international fuel standards. As advanced and ultra-clean vehicle technologies are introduced, fuel quality will have to rise accordingly. Philip Johnson, director of liquid filtration at worldwide provider Donaldson states: ‘Cleanliness recommendations by some manufacturers of high... [read more]

The rise and fall of the golden crop

Feature
Corn has long been the staple grain of the US ethanol industry, but now it seems the golden days are over. The economic crisis hit the industry hard and as a result halted investments in technology that could increase corn yields. This slow down, and the parallel speed-up of second generation technology, could break corn’s dominance. Cellulosic ethanol, made from the waste such as leaves and... [read more]

No more lagging behind

Feature
The ethanol industry experienced a red year in 2009 with plants facing bankruptcy and an escalation in raw material costs putting strain on profit margins. In order to survive, or thrive in the case of more established companies, producers, technology providers and yeast suppliers have turned their attention to improving, price wise and production wise, the core process in the manufacture of... [read more]

A speedy option

Feature
You cannot see it when it burns, and 100ml can kill you, that is if the 200mph Indy Car does not do it first. Replacing methanol with biomethanol is challenging one pillar of the biofuels industry – bioethanol. However, 90% of methanol is produced from natural gas, but now new renewable derivatives and processes are accelerating interest in biomethanol. There are two basic steps to producing... [read more]