Crimson Renewable Energy expands Kern County biodiesel facility

In California, recent expansion of Crimson Renewable Energy’s ultra-low carbon biodiesel production facility lead to a tripling of production and puts Kern County on the map as California’s leading producer of Advanced Biofuels, company officials announced last week at an event unveiling the newly revamped facility.

Crimson recently completed a multi-million dollar plant upgrade that was partially funded by a matching grant from the California Energy Commission’s Alternative Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program. The upgrades included expansion of steam and other existing systems as well as the installation of new second generation systems, which will enable the plant reduce unit energy consumption and water consumption by 10-15%. The plant is now ramping up to its new full production level of 24 million gallons annually of ultra-low carbon biodiesel fuel made entirely from used cooking oils and other inedible raw materials, he said.