9 new biofuel stories for your energy independent weekend

[HoosierRon]

California: 10.5 million gallons of ethanol per year form municipal waste.

PLEASANTON, Calif., July 18, 2008 – Fulcrum BioEnergy, Inc., today announced that it is advancing next-generation ethanol production with its plans to build one of the first commercial-scale production facilities for converting municipal solid waste to ethanol. The plant will process municipal solid waste–household garbage–revolutionizing waste disposal while creating a much needed low-cost, reliable and environmentally clean renewable transportation fuel.

When it begins operations in early 2010, the Sierra BioFuels plant is expected to produce approximately 10.5 million gallons of ethanol per year, and to process nearly 90,000 tons per year of municipal solid waste that would otherwise have been disposed of in landfills. Fulcrum BioEnergy will design, finance, construct, own and operate the plant, which will be located ten miles east of Reno at the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center in Storey County, Nevada. This latestage development project is expected to cost approximately $120 million and is set to enter construction by the end of this year.

California: 9 new natural gas fueling stations

SEAL BEACH, Calif., Jul 17, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- The Mobile Source Air Pollution Reduction Review Committee (MSRC) and the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) recently approved grant awards of $3.6 million to Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (Nasdaq:CLNE) to help defray the cost of expanding the Southern California network of natural gas fueling stations with nine new stations. In addition, SCAQMD announced grant awards totaling $7.7 million to assist a group of Clean Energy's customer companies with the purchase of clean-burning natural-gas powered heavy-duty fleet trucks, full-size buses and taxis.

USA: Registered voters approve increased use of ethanol by 2:1 margin -- blame gas, not ethanol, for high food prices

A recent bi-partisan survey of 1,200 registered voters shows that by a 2:1 margin, the public supports increased use of ethanol in our nation’s fuel supply. This majority crosses party lines, capturing conservatives and environmentalists alike. Voters largely blame the rising cost of food on fuel prices; less than one in ten blame the expanded use of ethanol.

Florida: Ethanol from municipal waste

MINNEAPOLIS, Jul 17, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) ----Diversified Ethanol... has negotiated additional ethanol plant design Purchase Orders. One of the first of these Purchase Orders is a $12 million construction project based in Dade City, Florida ....

This "new style" ethanol plant generates ethanol from food waste as well as other post consumer waste. The plant's compact size allows Diversified Ethanol to add an innovative water filtration system. The water filtration technology is an extremely important process in achieving an improved ethanol conversion, faster Local, State and Federal plant permitting, and increased profitability. The smaller waste-based plant designs achieve significantly improved cash flow when compared to large corn-based ethanol plants.

Washington, D.C.: Do you really think oil is not subsidized?

Clifford D. May, president of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, a policy institute focusing on terrorism: “Do you really think oil is not subsidized? Former CIA director James Woolsey estimates that U.S. oil companies receive preferential tax treatment worth more than $250 billion a year — and that doesn’t include the military costs necessary to keep oil supplies flowing around the world. We do that because oil is a strategic commodity: Western economies cannot function without it. That will be true until the day oil is forced to compete with a variety of alternative fuels.”

Nebraska and Minnesota: Biofuel Energy Corp begins shipping from its two 115 million-gallon-per-year ethanol plants

DENVER, July 17, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- BIOFUEL ENERGY CORP. announced today that it had made initial shipments of ethanol and distillers grain from its plants in Wood River, Nebraska and Fairmont, Minnesota. Last week, roughly 2 million gallons of ethanol were shipped. The related sales revenue will be reflected in the Company's financial statements for the quarter ending September 30, 2008.

Nigeria: Ethanol from sweet sorgum will create 406,000 new jobs

Global Biofuels Limited, the first biofuels refinery in Nigeria, endorsed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), has committed the sum of N87.5billion to ethanol project in the country.

To foster rapid production, the company has also brought in two varieties of sweet sorghum to be produced for feedstock from PRAJ in India while more varieties of feedstock had been developed by the company.
...
["The venture’s CEO, Dr. Felix Babatunde Obada, said that the venture would create 406,000 jobs."]

China: 286 million gallons of ethanol per year from cassava

Beijing, July 18 - Beverages manufacturer Hainan Yedao Co. Ltd, together with a state-owned oil company, plans to build a fuel ethanol plant with annual capacity of 100,000 tonnes using cassava as feedstock, Hainan Yedao said on Friday.

There are 286 gallons of ethanol in one metric ton. Cassava:



USA: Only 8% blame higher food prices on ethanol

49 percent chose "increased cost of gasoline and fuel"
11 percent chose "increased commodities speculation"
8 percent chose "increased use of grain for ethanol"
8 percent chose "corporate takeover of food production"
7 percent chose "increased demand in China and India"
7 percent chose "severe weather"

I need to start my own web site.

[johnriley]

Cassava? Great. This is a major food source in some poor countries.

[Stéphane Dumas]

Originally Posted by HoosierRon

I need to start my own web site.

you can still contribute to blogs like AutoSavant and AutoblogGreen

[Butz]

Originally Posted by johnriley

Cassava? Great. This is a major food source in some poor countries.

never seen one before, so it doesn't really bother me

[New_Mexico_Sunset_on_Rt66]

I appreciate your passion on this subject. I support alternative fuels, as long as it does not have any negative downstream impacts, such as higher food prices. Yet I also support more oil exploration.

We need to do both, explore alternative energy AND explore for oil.

[GMJoe]

Originally Posted by New_Mexico_Sunset_on_Rt66

I appreciate your passion on this subject. I support alternative fuels, as long as it does not have any negative downstream impacts, such as higher food prices. Yet I also support more oil exploration.

We need to do both, explore alternative energy AND explore for oil.

Totally agree!

WE have to do EVERYTHING,not just rely on one source. As alternatives come on line, we can cut back on carbon related fuels. But as of now, they are the most practicle and cost effective to produce.