Dynamic Fuels and Solazyme Partner to Supply Renewable Fuel to U.S. Navy

(Solazyme) Dynamic Fuels, LLC, a joint venture between Tyson Foods, Inc. and Syntroleum Corporation, has been awarded a contract to supply the U.S. Navy with 450,000 gallons of renewable fuels. Solazyme, Inc., a renewable oil and bioproducts company, will help Dynamic Fuels fulfill the contract, which the Navy and the USDA report is the single largest purchase of biofuel in government history.

The contract involves supplying the Navy with 100,000 gallons of jet fuel (Hydro-treated Renewable JP- 5 or HRJ-5) and 350,000 gallons of marine distillate fuel (Hydro-Treated Renewable F-76 or HRD-76). The fuel will be used as part of the Navy’s efforts to develop a “Green Strike Group” composed of vessels and ships powered by biofuel.

The Navy contract follows on the heels of both companies’ involvement in historic commercial airline flights using biofuel. This includes Dynamic Fuels’ renewable jet fuel work with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Finnair, Thomson Airways and Alaska Airlines, and Solazyme’s recent flight and partnership with United Airlines, which includes a letter of intent to provide 20 million gallons a year starting in 2014.

The fuel for the Navy will be manufactured at Dynamic Fuel’s Geismar, Louisiana, renewable fuels plant using U.S.-sourced yellow grease (used cooking oil) as well as Solazyme’s tailored algal oil as feedstocks. The fuel will be delivered to the U.S. Navy in May 2012. The Dynamic Fuels plant, which has been in operation for more than a year, is designed to convert non-food feedstocks such as algal oil, animal fats, and greases into renewable fuels.

“This award clearly demonstrates that we’re building momentum for the sale and use of our renewable fuels,” said Jeff Bigger, director of the Dynamic Fuels LLC Management Committee. “We’ve previously provided the U.S. military with fuel for testing. We believe this contract confirms they recognize the performance and environmental advantages of our fuel since they’re coming back for more and are asking for a much larger volume.”

“This is an historic contract and we are proud to be teaming up with Dynamic Fuels to produce and deliver the advanced biofuel to the U.S. Navy to sail the Great Green Fleet. Dynamic Fuels has been a leader in next generation advanced biofuels technology and this partnership further solidifies the progress that both of our companies are making in bringing advanced renewable fuels to commercialization,” said Jonathan Wolfson, CEO, Solazyme. “Solazyme is honored to be working with the U.S. Navy and DLA-Energy in driving forward the Navy’s effort under Secretary Ray Mabus to source 50 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2020.”

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Excerpt from Sacramento Bee: "Get ready America, because the gallons are on the way as we're about to make history by leading the world in delivering renewable replacement fuels," commented ABFA President Michael McAdams. "Today's announcement should effectively silence our fossil fuel detractors as we have yet more proof that advanced biofuels are real and real enough to help better prepare and strengthen America's armed forces."

...McAdams added, "The moment demands leadership from Washington, it is not a time to shy away and remove the public policy instruments that can help drive our nation to the day that Americans pull up to their neighborhood gas stations and fill up with advanced or cellulosic replacement fuels. We're already starting to see advanced biofuels delivering on its promise of creating new jobs, and providing economic and energy security for our nation and today's order will help boost that progress." READ MORE

Excerpt from Biofuels Digest: DLA will pay half the price, it says, for the Green Strike Group biofuel than it paid for biofuel for testing in 2009. Since the award has not yet been posted, we are left to do some guessing on price. To give the DLA’s characterization some color: In 2009, they paid $14/gallon for fuels delivered by Sustainable Oils, according to FedBizOpps.

The US Government appears undaunted by the high prices at this early stage. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack commented: “In March, the President challenged me, Secretary Mabus, and Secretary Steven Chu to work with the private sector to cultivate a competitively-priced—and domestically produced—drop-in biofuel industry that can power not just fighter jets, but also trucks and commercial airliners. This is not work we can afford to put off for another day.” READ MORE