Biofields confirms plan to produce 250 Mgy of ethanol from algae by 2013; 6900 gallons per acre yields reported

In Mexico, Biofields CEO Alejandro González Cimadevilla said that the company will produce 2 billion gallons of ethanol from algae by 2020. The company said that it considered 15 other locations in Mauretania, Algeria, Spain, and the US, before settling on Sonora because of its 328 days of annual sunshine and 3.75 million annual tons of CO2 emitted by local power plant CFE.

The company said that it has purchased 22,000 hectares of unproductive land, and Gonzalez said that he will produce 250 Mgy by 2013, building off the recycling company, Grupo Gondi, founded by his father Luis Gonzalez Diez. Gonzalez has recruited Mateo Lopez, a former Mobil Oil senior construction executive in Mexico.

The company secured an exclusive license for the Algenol technology until 2013 when the company reaches its 250 Mgy target. According to CNN Expansion, the company has invested $30 million to date in the project, which is reporting yields of 6900 gallons per acre at its Sonora site. The company is said to be hiring 1500 temporary and 350 permanent workers and commenced construction in December.

Free Subscription to the Daily Biofuels Digest e-newsletter

Related Stories

Algae Movers and Shakers: Algenol

Algenol has been in the news heavily in the past week, with reaction to their announced partnership with Dow Chemical. Most reaction has been positive; some continues to be skeptical. Dow Chemical ...

One billion gallons by 2014: algal fuel price, capacity projections

[caption id="attachment_11529" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Algae production facility (PetroAlgae plant in Fellsmere, Florida)"][/caption] Biofuels Digest is projecting that algal biofue...

Dow Chemical to partner with Algenol in 24-acre algae facility; ethanol is target as base for bioplastics

In Florida, Dow Chemical announced that it will partner with Algenol Fuels to build and operate a 24-acre Texas-based algae biorefinery demonstration farm that will produce ethanol at a target cost of...

Algenol: 50 Hottest Companies in Bioenergy candidate profile

Algenol Based in: Florida 2008-09 rank: #35 Business: Algael fuel developer. Algenol explains that energy from the sun through photosynthesis produces simple sugars inside algae cells which, c...

2008 projected corn yields to increase 2.7 percent to 155 bushels per acre despite spring flooding

The USDA released 2008 field corn crop production estimates showing that the Department expects corn yields to increase 2.7 percent this year to 155.2 bushels per acre, up from the 2007 record yield o...

Ethanol from seawater and algae gains large investment: a Biofuels Digest profile of Algenol

By Biofuels Digest correspondent Bob Brooks One billion gallons of ethanol per year by 2012 are projected from a (near $1 billion) new technology facility being constructed in the Sonora desert ar...