News

A government investment incentivising bioenergy developments in Albertans has been announced. Over the next 3 years, Albertans will receive a total of $444 million (€334.52 million), for use in renewable energy development, starting this year with the amount of $66 million (49.74 million) 'It is to encourage bioenergy production in the province, as a renewable source of energy,' says Alberta…
Read More »

Mustus Energy is to work with Lockheed Martin, building a new 41.5mW biomass-fuelled power generation plant in La Crete, Canada. Once completed, the facility will provide enough energy to power over 30,000 Canadian homes. Commercial operations are expected to begin in autumn 2013, with the previously discarded tops of aspen trees being used as feedstock. Lockheed Martin will offer support …
Read More »

Chemical engineers at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst have discovered a 'mini-cellulose' molecule that behaves in the same way as cellulose when heated to a high temperature. Complex chemical reactions that take place during high-temperature biofuel processes such as pyrolysis or gasification, have remained unknown, as wood molecules are too large, and the reactions are too complicated…
Read More »

Toronto-based renewable energy company, Protocol Biomass, has proposed building a wood pellet manufacturing plant in Prescott, Canada. In reaction to a growing European market, the facility would create a possible 50 new jobs, with expectations of doubling the workforce within five years. ‘European and UK markets are well defined [and] the Prescott area is ideally suited for a pellet…
Read More »

OriginOil, a developer of next-generation algae oil technologies for transportation fuel, chemicals and foods markets, has appointed Melbourne-based Frontline Engineering Australia as its first Certified Support Partner. Frontline will help algae producers and integrators, install, engineer and operate OriginOil systems in Australia and also the Asia-Pacific region. Ken Reynolds, OriginOil…
Read More »

The Brazilian ministry of environment and Brazilian Development Bank have launched a new credit line supporting projects focused on greenhouse gas reduction and climate change solutions. It was established under the National Climate Change Fund, and aims to encourage private, municipal, and state investments to support objectives set by Brazil’s National Policy on Climate Change in 2009.…
Read More »

Kansas could become home to one of the first commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol refineries in the US. The global energy company Abengoa Bioenergy, aims to open what could be the first ethanol plant of this scale, in Hugoton, in 2013. It is expected to create 300 construction jobs, 65 permanent jobs and generate an annual payroll of almost $5 million (€3.8 million).…
Read More »

Biomass heating company HWEnergy has predicted 40% growth for 2012. As the first business in Scotland to sign up for the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI), HWEnergy has subsequently doubled its workforce in preparation for expected trade expansion. The RHI scheme encourages non-domestic properties to use renewable technologies, extending payments of up to £0.085 (€0.1) for each…
Read More »

The Roundtable on Sustainable Biofuels (RSB) has announced the first completed commercial certification of the Manildra Group, Australia. Through its subsidiary Shoalhaven Starches Pty Ltd, the Manildra Group produces bioethanol from starchy wastewater generated by their wheat-processing facility. The certification, conducted by NCS International, serves to prove sustainable biofuels may be…
Read More »

Construction of the US's first large-scale, wood-to-ethanol plant is set to begin this year in Upper Peninsula, Michigan. The $232-million (€175.05 million) biorefinery is to be built on 40 acres in Kinross Charter Township, with completion expected in late 2013. A company called Mascoma developed the wood-to-ethanol process which combines wood chips with microorganisms, but the project…
Read More »

Chroen Industries has been sold to Linde Engineering Dresden after it went into adminstration and Linde will continue to develop Choren’s Carbo-V technology for synthetic gas. This gas can be used to produce biofuels and Linde already works in this sector, planning, delivering and constructing chemical, gas, biotechnology and pharmaceutical plants. The insolvency administrator, Bruno…
Read More »

The Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association in the UK says it is pleased the review of feed-in-tariffs has finally been published although it is concerned about the proposed tariffs for anaerobic digestion (AD). The government says that plants with installed capacity of more than 500kW will get given £0.09 (€0.107)/kWh from October, which is £0.009 less than what they would…
Read More »

Active Energy says that in order to focus on its Ukraine biomass project, which it recently purchased, it would close its two UK-based businesses. The company says that although its performance was what it had expected last year, its revenues had ‘deteriorated significantly’ and it is worried this would continue in the future because of increased competition and a rise in sales cycles…
Read More »

New woodchip boilers will be installed in Herefordshire, UK, after a local company won a £60,000 (€72,000) government funding grant to develop sustainable schemes. Woolhope Woodheat will be in charge of the project which will see the boilers installed in schools, organisations and businesses around the area. The clean burning woodchip boilers should help to reduce heating bills and…
Read More »