(MarketWatch) ZeaChem Commences USDA-Funded Initiative to Build a Bioenergy Industry in the Pacific Northwest ZeaChem Inc., a developer of biorefineries for the conversion of renewable biomass into sustainable fuels and chemicals, today announced that it has successfully completed contract negotiations to
Oregon
Back TO HOMEAgriculture Secretary Vilsack Announces Support for a New Advanced Biofuel Production Facility in Oregon: Project will Create Jobs, Expand Production of Biofuels
(US Department of Agriculture) Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced that USDA has approved a conditional commitment in the amount of $232.5 million to ZeaChem Boardman Biorefinery, LLC (ZBB) through the Biorefinery Assistance Program. ZBB will operate a 25 million
January 26, 2012 Read Full Article
Oregon State University Researcher Highlights Public,Private Biomass Work in Oregon
by Erin Voegele (Biorefining Magazine) ...During a presentation at the 2012 Pacific West Biomass Conference & Tradeshow, Christine Kelly, an associate professor of chemical, biological and environmental engineering at Oregon State University, outlined the achievements made by private companies, research
January 23, 2012 Read Full Article
Boardman’s Next Life May Depend on Giant Cane Plant
by Sean Meyers (Sustainable Business Oregon) Arundo donax has passed its first test as a possible biofuel alternative to coal being burned at Portland General Electric’s Boardman power plant. Farmers and researchers in eastern Oregon and Washington are turning in positive
January 18, 2012 Read Full Article
ZeaChem, and the Renewable Fuel Standard
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ZeaChem launches its 250,000 gallon per year core process. How could this possibly matter, in the context of a 500 million gallon cellulosic biofuels target for 2012, that was waived down to 10 million? As
January 09, 2012 Read Full Article
Washington State University Center at Prosser Researches Possible Biofuels
by Ross Courtney (The Seattle Times/Yakima Herald-Republic) ..."You get down to it, it's dirty work," said Steve Fransen, a research agronomist at the Washington State University Irrigated Agriculture Research and Extension Center. He means research, not farming, but farming is what
December 15, 2011 Read Full Article
Economic Study Questions Cost-Effectiveness of Current Biofuels and Their Ability to Cut Fossil Fuel Use; Gas Tax and Energy Efficiency Improvements Found More Effective
(Green Car Congress) A new study by economists at Oregon State University questions the cost-effectiveness of current biofuels and says they would barely reduce fossil fuel use and would likely increase greenhouse gas emissions. The researchers focused on the major mandated and
December 02, 2011 Read Full Article
'If You Build It, We Will Buy It' Says Airline CEO on Biojet Fuel
by Luke Geiver (Biorefining Magazine) The second week in November could go down as one of the most significant weeks for advanced biofuels, airline companies and the use of biofuel-blended jet fuel in the U.S. Early in the week, United
November 17, 2011 Read Full Article
SeQuential Pacific Biodiesel Hits Production Milestone
by Bryan Sims (Biodiesel Magazine) ...The company’s community-scale model is paying off as the plant reached a milestone surpassing its 10 millionth gallon of biodiesel produced from used cooking oil. The plant, which officially came online in the fall of 2008,
November 02, 2011 Read Full Article
Ethanol Research Centers on Poplars
(R&D) In May a team of researchers led by Rick Meilan, associate professor of forestry and natural resources, began a five-year study to determine the viability of poplar species as an ethanol feedstock and cash crop for Indiana farmers. The study includes
October 26, 2011 Read Full Article
BP, Unlilever among Investors Pouring $49M into ZeaChem, Chromatin, Agradis
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...There’s a rumor going around the biofuels and biomaterials business that today represents one of the most difficult periods to raise capital. Apparently, the rumors did not reach ZeaChem, Chromatin or Synthetic Genomics, which this
October 26, 2011 Read Full Article
Oregon State University Study: Woody Biomass Not a Good Substitute For Fossil Fuels
by Amelia Templeton (EarthFix) In a study published today in Nature Climate Change, researchers at OSU suggest that efforts to thin Northwest forests to reduce the risk of wildfire and create biofuels could have an unintended consequence: increasing the region’s carbon emissions. The
October 26, 2011 Read Full Article
Gevo Awarded Contract to Supply Jet Fuel to U.S. Air Force
(BusinessWire/Yahoo!Finance) Air Force Purchase is for Jet Engine Testing and Feasibility Flight Demonstration Gevo, Inc., a leading renewable chemicals and advanced biofuels company, received a $5 million grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) for the development of biojet
September 30, 2011 Read Full Article
Trillium Awarded SBIR Grant from National Science Foundation
(Trillium FiberFuels/Ethanol Producer Magazine) Trillium FiberFuels Inc. has been awarded a Small Business Innovation Research grant to further its work in developing innovative technologies for creating fuel-grade ethanol from straw and other biomass. This latest award to Trillium from the
September 06, 2011 Read Full Article
Sustainable Retail Biodiesel is Here!
(Sustainable Biodiesel Alliance) The Sustainable Biodiesel Alliance, alongside SBA Business Member companies in three states unveiled the first retail locations scored through the Sustainability Report Card for biodiesel at the nozzle. SBA Business members participated in this new system that scores
August 22, 2011 Read Full Article
ZeaChem Forms Strategic Partnership with Chrysler Group
by Kris Bevill (Ethanol Producer Magazine) ZeaChem Inc. announced it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Chrysler Group LLC to accelerate the commercialization of its cellulosic ethanol process and to assist in establishing a strong consumer market for the
August 15, 2011 Read Full Article
Phase Shift: 12 Hot Gas-Based Biofuels Technologies
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...But a new generation of technologies is coming along fast, primarily in advanced biofuels, which is gasifying biomass at the front end along its path towards making fuels, chemicals or other biomaterials – or in
August 09, 2011 Read Full Article
USDA Awards $45 Million to Four New BCAP Projects
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today the creation of four additional Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP) project areas in six states to expand the availability of non-food crops to be used in the manufacturing of
July 29, 2011 Read Full Article
Wyden Act Promotes Alternative Fuels
(MyCentralOregon) Legislation introduced by Senator Ron Wyden and Michigan's Debbie Stabenow to promote the implementation of viable alternatives to oil passed the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Thursday. Wyden said the Alternative Fuels Vehicles Competitiveness and Security Act will increase
July 15, 2011 Read Full Article
ZeaChem Executes Joint Development Agreement with Procter & Gamble
(Seeking Alpha/ZeaChem) Agreement Will Accelerate Commercialization of Sustainable Bio-based Chemicals ZeaChem Inc., a developer of biorefineries for the conversion of renewable feedstocks into sustainable fuels and chemicals, today announced a binding multi-year joint development agreement with Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG). The agreement
June 01, 2011 Read Full Article
Groundbreaking Study Details Viable Pathway to Develop Sustainable Aviation Biofuels Industry in Northwest
(Sustainable Aviation Fuels Northwest) Political support needed to jumpstart growth of domestic biofuels industry The Pacific Northwest has the diverse feedstocks, fuel-delivery infrastructure and political will needed to create a viable biofuels industry capable of reducing greenhouse gases and meeting the
May 25, 2011 Read Full Article
Portland-Area Sea Scouts Learn All Things Nautical, from Sailing a Ketch to Converting a Mine Sweeper to Biodiesel
(The Oregonian) ...the Tsunami, recently won the most prestigious national honor awarded by Sea Scouts: the position of National Flagship. The award recognizes program quality, youth achievement and adult commitment, and is given to just one ship of the more
May 20, 2011 Read Full Article
ZeaChem Signs Binding Feedstock Agreement with GreenWood Tree Farms to Supply its First Commercial Biorefinery
(Yahoo!Finance/BusinessWire) ZeaChem Inc., a developer of biorefineries for the conversion of renewable biomass into sustainable fuels and chemicals, today announced it has signed a long-term binding term sheet with GreenWood Tree Farm Fund (GTFF), managed by GreenWood Resources (GWR), to
May 17, 2011 Read Full Article
Sustainable Aviation Fuels Northwest
(Climate Solutions) Alaska Airlines, The Boeing Company, Port of Seattle, Port of Portland, Spokane International Airport, and Washington State University have initiated a strategic stakeholder process to develop a "Flight Path" (action plan) to produce sustainable aviation biofuel in the
May 05, 2011 Read Full Article
Oregon’s Diesel to Contain 5 Percent Renewable Biodiesel
(National Biodiesel Board) Oregon is about to become the second state to require that most of the diesel sold there contain at least 5 percent biodiesel (B5). The National Biodiesel Board applauded the state on its progressive upgrade. “Policymakers in Oregon
April 12, 2011 Read Full Article
Waste Management, Total Invest in Agilyx, Waste Plastics-to-Crude Oil Pyrolysis
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...The Portland-based company, once known as Plas2Fuel, is developing a novel, scalable technology that converts difficult-to-recycle waste plastics into synthetic sweet crude oil. Last year, it received TechAmerica’s 2010 Cool Product of the Year Award.
April 04, 2011 Read Full Article
Builders Erect Cellulosic Ethanol Plant at Port of Morrow
by Dean Brickley (East Oregonian) Zea-Chem’s cellulosic ethanol demonstration plant is more than one-third finished. Builders erected three 40,000-gallon fermentation tanks this week and continued bolting together the steel structure for the two-story operations building. Excavation began last fall, and contractors poured
March 28, 2011 Read Full Article
Steel in the Ground
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) But this week in the little burgh of Boardman, Oregon (population 3,300), which happens to sit adjacent to the second-largest inland port in the western United States (the port of Morrow, on the Columbia
March 10, 2011 Read Full Article
Pulp Non-Fiction: Biofuels a Ray of Sunshine in a Gloomy Season
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) As the pulp and paper industry reels from the internet’s impact, biofuels and renewable chemicals are offering value-adds, waste remediation, and new markets In Florida, the affable Rod Young, perhaps the most pre-eminent analyst and forecaster
February 22, 2011 Read Full Article
Oregon's B5 Mandate Triggered
By Ron Kotrba (Biodiesel Magazine) The Oregon agriculture department's measurement standards division issued notice yesterday that its in-state biodiesel production threshold of 15 MMgy was recently met, triggering Oregon's B5 mandate. Come April 1, all diesel fuel sold in the state
February 03, 2011 Read Full Article
Fill ’er Up, with Fuel Made in Oregon
by Merry MacKinnon (Pamplin Media Group) ...Jana Gastellum, global warming program director for the Oregon Environmental Council, says the sustainable approach to making biodiesel for heavier vehicles and ethanol for passenger cars is to concentrate on “cellulosic biomass” found in
January 21, 2011 Read Full Article
Tidewater Terminal Co. to Expand Umatilla Facility
by Cathy Kessinger (TriCity Herald) A $1.3 million grant from Connect Oregon will help Tidewater Terminal Co. expand its facility in Umatilla, company officials said Monday. The company will install a new 1.26 million-gallon tank at Umatilla. This will allow Tidewater to
November 04, 2010 Read Full Article
Corvallis Ethanol Producer Optimistic
by Nathalie Weinstein (Daily Journal of Commerce: Oregon) Large basins of fermented sugars are brewing at Trillium FiberFuels in Corvallis. But this brew isn’t beer; it’s cellulosic ethanol, a promising biofuel that the start-up company says could steal some of corn
September 27, 2010 Read Full Article
Ban on Field Burning Prompts Plan to Convert Straw to Energy
by Dana Tims (The Oregonian) ...They propose breaking ground next year on a $25 million bioenergy park somewhere in the Willamette Valley. The multi-faceted facility would convert straw and other waste materials into saleable products such as ethanol, electricity, fertilizer, compost
September 13, 2010 Read Full Article
Potato Power Future of Biofuels, Vodka Maker Says
by Emma Jackson (WardsAuto.com) First scotch, now vodka. William Chase, founder of Chase Vodka, has launched a plan to convert waste potatoes from his U.K. distillery into a high-grade biofuel for vehicles. “We have known for a long time that potato starch
September 09, 2010 Read Full Article
Looking for a Biofuels Breakthrough in Boardman, OR
by Amy Hsuan (The Oregonian) ... former oil executive Jim Imbler, who now heads a Colorado biofuels company called ZeaChem Inc., thinks he might have found the key to profitability in Oregon. And it lies in Boardman, home to one