Major Stories
#Gasolinegate
In Washington, researchers for a report published by the Urban Air Initiative contend that “technical data that shows the nation has been exposed to decades of flawed test fuels and flawed driving tests, which in turn means flawed emissions results and mileage claims”. The complete Beyond a Reasonable Doubt series from UAI is available here. Further, EPA […]
Heard on the Floor: Reflections and the buzz from ABLC Global 2018
The bunting is down, the bands have retreated and ABLC Global is now in the rear-view mirror — all the bustle of 625 delegates raising a din of deal-making so loud in the anterooms that delegates had to routinely flee to other floors to be heard. It was, at times, not unlike the old trading […]
Duckweed takes off in nutrition space as well as biofuel and bioenergy
Duckweed is some pretty amazing stuff. And no, we aren’t talking about that kind of Daffy Duck duck weed. We are talking about the green stuff that grows in ponds and floats on the surface of water, often mistaken for algae. Why is this green goodness so good? Duckweed, also referred to as lemna or […]
The 40 Hottest Technologies in the Advanced Bioeconomy 2018
In California, Impossible Foods took the #1 spot in the 2018 “40 Hottest Technologies in the Advanced Bioeconomy” rankings, published today in The Digest, the world’s most widely-read bioeconomy daily. The announcement was made live at the Advanced Bioeconomy Leadership Conference (ABLC Global), which is meeting in San Francisco this week. The annual rankings, which […]
DigestData debuts: global, message-enabled, relational database of 900 bioeconomy projects
In Florida, The Digest is announcing the debut of DigestData, an integrated database of 900 bioeconomy projects in operation or in planning around the world. DigestData is brought to you by Nuu Media and its Nuu and Digest brands and teams, in partnership with the National Corn Growers Association and Global Biofuture Solutions and its […]
8-Slide Guides
The Digest’s 2018 Multi-Slide Guide to Biobased Chemicals
IEA Bioenergy Task 42’s goal is to contribute to the development and deployment of integrated biorefineries as part of highly efficient sustainable value chains (co-)producing food/feed ingredients, chemicals, materials, fuels, power and/or heat out of sustainably sourced biomass (wood, crops, residues, etc.) as base for a global BioEconomy. Here we have a recent deck from Avantium […]
Just in from ABLC: The Digest’s 2018 Multi-Slide Guide to Hot Technologies and their Examples
Each year at ABLC, we have had the great fortune to have in our opening panel a tremendous sector overview from Roger Wyse, the Co-CEO of Spruce Capital and one of the foremost venture capitalists in the US and before that one of our top researchers. Spruce Capital Partners is co-manager of the Malaysia Life […]
The 40 Hottest Technologies in the Advanced Bioeconomy 2018
In California, Impossible Foods took the #1 spot in the 2018 “40 Hottest Technologies in the Advanced Bioeconomy” rankings, published today in The Digest, the world’s most widely-read bioeconomy daily. The announcement was made live at the Advanced Bioeconomy Leadership Conference (ABLC Global), which is meeting in San Francisco this week. The annual rankings, which […]
The Bioeconomy 2019: The Digest’s 2018 Multi-Slide Guide to Advanced Bioeconomy Development Priorities
What’s next in the biobased revolution? After fuels, chemicals, say many. What’s the role of incentives, the size of the opportunity and the potential rewards for a region? The Iowa Economic Development Authority took a look at development priorities — and how these relate to Iowa’s capabilities — in an opening morning presentation at ABLC Global […]
2018 State of the Industry: ABLC Global kickoff presentation and remarks
This year we have 600 delegates here at ABLC Global from 30 countries and representing 330 organizations. So the networking will be intense as well as the learning from 180 different speakers. Where is the industry right now? What are the 25 Key trends, how the industry is organizing, what’s up, what’s hot, what’s down, […]
The Latest World News
BASF starts producing EU-REDcert-methanol
In Germany, BASF has started production of methanol on the basis of renewable raw materials according to the biomass balance approach. The product name is EU-REDcert-methanol. The company replaces fossil raw materials with second-generation renewable raw materials and uses waste as well as residual materials. As a result, BASF reduces emissions of climate-damaging greenhouse gases […]
Port sues Pacific Ethanol and Union Pacific for 2017 derailment and aftermath
In Oregon, in response to five empty railcars that were used by Pacific Ethanol Boardman to bring in corn feedstock but later derailed after they had been unloaded back in September 2017, the Port of Morrow where the derailment occurred is suing both Pacific Ethanol and Union Pacific Railroad for nearly $340,000. The port claims […]
Scania Transport Laboratory fleet running almost entirely fossil fuel-free
In Sweden, as of 2018, the Scania Transport Laboratory fleet runs almost entirely on fossil free fuel and hybrid drive which reduces carbon emissions by more than 95 percent. The lab isn’t yet 100% fossil fuel-free as there is a lack of HVO/biodiesel fuel stations outside Sweden which means that some trucks sometimes have to refuel […]
RIN prices fall so low to encourage gasoline imports from Europe and Canada
In Washington, Platts reports that RIN prices trading at a fraction of what they were a year ago— just 1.74 cents/gal last week compared to 94.5 cents/RIN on October 23, 2017—have encouraged imports of gasoline from Europe and Canada into East Coast ports, especially since many refiners are running below capacity and Philadelphia Energy Solutions […]
FS Bioenergia breaks ground on second corn-based ethanol plant in Mato Grosso
In Brazil, FS Bioenergia broke ground last week on its second corn-based ethanol plant in Mato Grosso. The US$267 million facility is expected to come online in 2020 when it will produce 530 million liters of ethanol annually—double the size of its current facility in Lucas do Rio Verde—and will power the plant by using […]
R&D News
Researchers find different strategies for boosting cellulosic ethanol production
In Michigan, scientists at the Great Lakes Bioenergy Science Center investigated how five different feedstocks affected process and field-scale ethanol yields. Two annual crops (corn stover and energy sorghum) and three perennial crops (switchgrass, miscanthus, and restored prairie) were pretreated using ammonia fiber expansion, hydrolyzed, and fermented separately using yeast or bacteria. They found that […]
Unprecedented genome analysis of budding yeasts to help biofuels research
In Wisconsin, an unprecedented comparison of hundreds of species of yeasts has helped geneticists brew up an expansive picture of their evolution over the last hundreds of millions of years, including an analysis of the way they evolved individual appetites for particular food sources that may be a boon to biofuels research. Researchers led by […]
Swedish researchers using sun and graphene to produce ethanol and methanol
In Sweden, using the energy from the sun and graphene applied to the surface of cubic silicon carbide, researchers at Linköping University, Sweden, are working to develop a method to convert water and carbon dioxide to the renewable energy of the future. They have now taken an important step toward this goal, reporting a method […]
India to open fifth bioenergy R&D center with eye on advanced biofuels
In India, the Hindu newspaper reports that the Department of Biotechnology and The Energy and Research Institute will collaborate on a three-year, $1.5 million research program on advanced biofuels and bio-commodities with the aim of developing as well as commercializing technology. The research center created to implement the program is the fifth such bioenergy R&D […]
EU researchers developing small-scale biofuel facility using forest waste feedstock
In Germany, scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute for Microengineering and Microsystems IMM, working together with twelve research groups from seven countries in the EU project BIOGO, have developed a technique to produce just such an eco-friendly biofuel. The novel fuel’s ingredients come from forests. A prototype novel biofuel plant stands in the courtyard behind the […]
Policy & Policymakers
Ethanol industry hit hard by Trump’s Chinese trade war
In Washington, Reuters reports that the ethanol industry is suffering heavily from the Trump Administration’s trade war with China as demonstrated by a number of quarterly filings by ethanol companies last week. Without China to buy 200 million gallons of ethanol, trade that has dried up due to the ongoing trade war, the US market […]
PCA pushes for B5 instead of B2, IPPCA says no way
In the Philippines, the Independent Philippine Petroleum Companies Association (IPPCA) opposed the plan of the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) to increase the biodiesel amount to B5 from B2. “With Euro 4, there is no compelling reason to add or increase the biodiesel blend, given that the current diesel standard is already very clean,” IPPCA said […]
Brazilian industry looking at way to reduce soybean exports to China
In Brazil, Reuters reports that Ubrabio wants the government to return 10% of the taxes levied on soybean exports to be returned to crushers so they can compete with international demand for whole beans. China has been importing Brazilian soybeans en masse in response to the trade war with the US that has in turn […]
APPA calls on Spain to boost support for biofuels including E10 and B10 mandate
In Spain, Renewable Energy Magazine reports that the national renewable energy business association APPA is calling on the government to increase its support for biofuels, saying that they are the only real option for reducing the carbon intensity of fuels for light vehicles even if the goal to have 5 million electric vehicles on the […]
Thailand to divert palm oil to power generation and promote B20 in trucks
In Thailand, the National News Bureau reports that the national palm oil policy committee is going to help reduce the 190,000-metric-ton palm oil surplus by diverting 160,000 tons towards biodiesel production that will then be used for electricity production at the Ratchaburi and Bangpakong Power Plants. Additionally, the committee is calling for uptake of B20 in […]
Other Recent Articles
EU rapeseed-based biodiesel prices hit record high as Rhine challenges continue to bite
In the Netherlands, Platts reports that ongoing logistical challenges due to the Rhine River’s continued low levels have pushed rapeseed-based biodiesel to an all-time high of $1,422/mt FOB ARA, more than $100 per ton higher than the week prior. In line with higher RME prices, the premium for RME over FAME 0 also hit an […]
Biosev sells Giasa mill to M&N for nearly $19M
In Brazil, Biosev, a sugar and ethanol company owned by Louis Dreyfus Company, agreed to sell the Giasa mill to M&N Participações S/A, the parent company of the Olho D’Água Group, for R$ 70 million, or about $18.7 million, making it one of the largest in the Brazilian sugar and ethanol industry. Biosev sold the […]
Stora Enso launches biobased RFID tag technology for intelligent packaging
In Finland, Stora Enso makes a high-tech meets eco-friend move by launching a new sustainable paper-based RFID tag technology called ECO, designed for intelligent packaging functionalities in supply chain, retail and e-commerce applications. Intelligent Packaging by Stora Enso develops and delivers RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology, which allows the packaged product to be automatically tracked, […]
Transportation company switches 600+ trucks to renewable diesel
In California, transportation and logistics company, Ecology, switched its fleet of more than 600 trucks to run on Neste MY Renewable Diesel and is reporting cleaner fuel filters, fewer maintenance problems and reductions in tailpipe emissions. Neste MY Renewable Diesel is a low-carbon, drop-in fuel fuel produced from 100% renewable and sustainable raw materials, primarily […]
Kraig Biocraft scales up 2nd generation dragon silk
In Michigan, Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, Inc. has begun the scale up of its recently announced second generation Dragon Silk. This new material was specially designed at Kraig Labs’ Michigan research headquarters for application in protective textiles, particularly for military and police, where increased strength and decreased flexibility are expected to provide improved protection. Scale up […]
ZSL report finds palm oil companies’ commitments lacking
In the United Kingdom, the world’s largest survey of palm oil producers and traders to date finds a lack of assurance in tackling forest loss. Published by the Zoological Society of London, the report assessed 70 of the world’s most significant palm oil producers and traders. The survey found that although 49 of the 70 […]
