(automatically updated/inserted from The Big Biofuels Blog)

Krisztina Holly has an interesting article on biofuels, the automotive bail out, evolution and the innovation ecosystem over on the Huffington Post.

Part of her post is particularly resonant for the biofuels industry

Big companies play an important role, too, in this healthy, diverse business ecosystem. They help amplify - through acquisition, licensing, or even copying - the impacts of successful ideas.

Just as dangerous as cultivating a monoculture is picking a “winner” prematurely.

In the recent green energy debate, for example, the U.S. chose to subsidize corn ethanol as the winning new clean fuel, giving $7.0 billion in subsidies in 2006 alone.

Through premature decision making, have we thwarted cheaper and cleaner competitors?

What we should have done, and still can, is to encourage innovators developing a wide range of fuel-alternatives including wind, algae, solar, methanol, and so on. Government should make available research funding, infrastructure, education, incentives, and regulations for the outcome we want, and let the market decide.

Surely we have to agree with the last statement.

The way ahead should be to let a thousand biofuel flowers/algae/non-food crops/waste streams bloom.

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I’ve just recieved a press release from EuropaBio, which explains why the organisation likes the recently approved EU Climate and Energy Package…. Here it is.

European Parliament’s approval of the Climate and Energy Package provides the European biotech industry with a predictable business environment to develop advanced biofuels

Brussels 17 December 2008

The European Biotech Industry Association (EuropaBio) congratulates the European Parliament and the Council of Europe on passing the Climate Action and Renewable Energy Package. EuropaBio appreciates the effort involved in approving this Package within a year of the Proposal’s publication by the European Commission.

The biotech industry welcomes the mandatory 10% target for road transport fuels coming from renewable energies by 2020. This will provide industry with a predictable environment to develop a strong biofuels sector in Europe and invest in innovation for advanced biofuels. “Setting a two-step approach (35-50%) for the greenhouse gas (GHG) emission savings threshold, together with incentives for second-generation biofuels will drive public support and increase private sector investment in research and development to speed up the development and commercialisation of second generation or advanced biofuels” said Kirsten Birkegaard Staer, Chair of EuropaBio’s Biofuels Task Force.

EuropaBio believes it is essential that the emerging biofuels sector is built on sound sustainability principles. The main driver of the renewable energy directive is to achieve environmental, societal as well as economical benefits. It is important that the long-term political and public support will be dependent on biofuels being seen to deliver on these goals in a sustainable and a socially responsible manner. The criteria as outlined in the renewable energy directive provide a good basis for the sustainability of transport fuel. However it is crucial for their adequate implementation by industry and Member States to develop clear guidelines or international standards.

EuropaBio agrees with the European Parliament on the importance of addressing the potential impact of land-use change. EuropaBio welcomes the decision to require the Commission to carry out a review on indirect impact and bring forward a proposal based on scientific evidence. However we recognize the significant scientific uncertainty in evaluating indirect effects and believe that the current objective of defining a method by 2010 to quantify it seems to be very optimistic. To minimize land-use change, EuropaBio supports an approach to increase productivity and pace biofuels development at a rate consistent with food production together with support for advanced biofuel technologies.

“We applaud Europe’s policy makers for the work they have done to develop the renewable energy sector. Biofuels are essential to realising a low carbon society and energy security, and for this goal, every solution, including biofuels is important. A coherent policy environment such as the one envisioned in the Climate Action and Renewable Energy Package will provide much needed support to industry’s investment and innovation” said Willy De Greef, EuropaBio Secretary General.

-ENDS

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(automatically updated/inserted from The Envirofuels Blog)

In November 2008 the Australian Biodiesel Group (ABG) announced a planned strategic alignment with White Mountain Group (WMG). This alignment was in the form of an investment of $16 million in ABG by WMG and the transfer of a patented and commercially proven biodiesel technology to ABG that produces low cost renewable diesel fuel. Today [...]

Please click this link to read the full article on the Envirofuels website.

guys.

just a quick 1. yes i know i am lazy, but, i am at work.

a 2H engine. is this one ok for svo?

please i need a quick answers.

thanks guys.

H1K

i’ve read that wvo which has been properly filtered and dewatered can be poured directly into the fuel tank of a completely stock (no conversion kit) diesel vehicle, provided that you you mix it beforehand 50/50 with regular diesel, (and up to 70% wvo with the rest diesel for warmer climates) provided that you put a wvo filter in the fuel line. is this true or false?

My main supplier (local take-away) has changed oil brand again. When I first started collecting he was using Formula 40 - ‘Australian Made’ cottonseed oil.
The price went up and he changed to ‘Simply’ cottonseed oil - imported ‘Product of Malaysia’. Now he has changed again to ETA cottonseed oil - Goodman Fielder product ‘refined and packed in Australia from local and imported materials’. Don’t know why, haven’t spoken to him yet but I imagine it is a price decision.

(automatically updated/inserted from The Big Biofuels Blog)

As 2008 draws to a close it is time to look back and assess how well I did in my predictions for 2008, at the start of the year, and let you know about a couple of guest bloggers who have very kindly agreed to guest post for me while I’m on holiday.

The two gentlemen in question (and in order) are and Professor David B. Benson, who regularly offers thoughtful comments over 2008 and Pradeep Indrakanti, who has also been a regular commentator on the blog’s content. He also co-writes the Energy Engineering Blog, which is worth checking out.

So how do I think that I did in my post on 1 January 2008. … I’m sure you’ll give me your opinion.

My first prediction was that the price of food grains would continue to rise, and my fourth prediction was that rationally, or not, rising food prices would be blamed on biofuels. I warned of the rise of an alliance of big il and big food retail on the issue.

One the whole those two came true this year, the price of grains rose considerably from historical lows helped by ethanol from corn in the US; asset price inflation in the first nine months of the year and an influx of speculators trying to make an even faster buck.
I didn’t predict that or the bubble. If I had I wouldn’t be writing this now.

On the alliance between big oil and big food. The US grocery business felt the sharp end of rising food prices this year and went to battle defending the price rises by blaming increasing crop prices. Despite the relatively small part of the cost of processed food that is attributable to crop prices. I’ll give myself half a mark there because I can’t recall writing anything much about the oil lobby.

Point three, about a fed driving a biofuel power car to demand back taxes from a home brewer, didn’t as far as I know happen in 2008. So nothing there…

Point two about municipalities following the lead of San Francisco and Stagecoach in Kilmarnock and using used oil for thier transportaion needs. Toronto did. Where Toronto goes today the rest of the world follows tomorrow, perhaps. Is one more, more? Yes! Don’t forget Ineos.

Point five, I am happy to reiterate Cellulosic ethanol based around degrading cellulose and lignin and fermenting the simple sugars they yield will still be five years away at the end of the month, and also at the end of December 2009.

So I’d give myself around 3.5/5. Not too flashy. But I’ll not be making any more predictions for a while.

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Looks like it could become a good deal. Has been lowering the price every week:

1997 Ssangyong Musso 2.9l Mercedes Diesel 4WD - EX COND - eBay, Passenger Vehicles, Cars, Cars, Bikes, Boats. (end time 25-Dec-08 17:05:31 AEDST)