by Stacy Feldman (SolveClimate) Industry rips failing DOE loan program on the heels of EPA's decision to slash cellulosic biofuel
Financing
Back TO HOMECritics Slam EU-Brazil African Biofuel Plan
by Andrew Willis (Bloomberg Businessweek) EU and Brazilian leaders are set to announce a new "triangular co-operation" initiative, under which they
July 19, 2010 Read Full Article
Aviation Industry Harnesses Algae for Biofuel
by Gerald Traufetter (Der Spiegel) There are plans within the aviation industry to replace kerosene with biofuel derived from algae.
July 19, 2010 Read Full Article
Exxon Says Growing Its Algae Biofuels Program
By Alyson Zepeda (Reuters) * Greenhouse will test algae strains * Next step is outdoor testing * Spending will grow over the next
July 15, 2010 Read Full Article
Department of Energy: Futher Actions Are Needed to Improve DOE's Ability to Evaluate and Implement the Loan Guarantee Program
(US Government Accountability Office) Since the Department of Energy's (DOE) loan guarantee program (LGP) for innovative energy projects was established in
July 14, 2010 Read Full Article
America’s Slippery Slope of Support for Renewable Energy
by Joanna Schroeder (DomesticFuel) Our country is quickly sliding down a slippery slope. Not too long ago, we were the leaders
July 09, 2010 Read Full Article
The Biofuels Investor Migration to Brazil
by Joanna Schroeder (DomesticFuel) A colleague of mine, Will Thurmond, who is the CEO of markets research firm Emerging Markets
July 07, 2010 Read Full Article
Cellulosic Ethanol Needs Boost
(Journal Star) Editorial The environmental advantages of renewable fuels could hardly be more evident than now, when the consequences of
July 02, 2010 Read Full Article
Green Victory: the Flip Side of “NIMBY, NUMBEE and Nod”
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...Meanwhile, one suggestion that emerged was, in the grand tradition of funding the Statue of
July 02, 2010 Read Full Article
NIMBY, NUMBEE and Nod
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) editorial A recent US poll, taken in the wake of the Gulf of Mexico oil
July 01, 2010 Read Full Article
Report Predicts Biorefineries Will Offer a Solution to Significantly Reducing CO2 Emissions and Creating Economic Growth
(World Economic Forum) Biorefineries have a major role to play in tackling climate change, according to the World Economic Forum report
June 30, 2010 Read Full Article
Department of Energy Announces $24 Million for Algal Biofuels Research
(US Department of Energy) The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced June 28, 2010, the investment of up to $24 million for three
June 29, 2010 Read Full Article
Energy of the Future? It’s Green and Slimy
by Penni Crabtree (SignOnSanDiego.com) Algae’s potential vast, but the cost so far is immense. ...Scientists agree that the science to turn
June 29, 2010 Read Full Article
Amyris Announces $133 Million Equity Sale, Partnerships, Investments, JVs with Total, P&G, Cosan, Soliance, M&G
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In California, Amyris Biotechnologies unveiled this week a stunning series of partnerships and investments from
June 26, 2010 Read Full Article
Novozymes Says Demand for Crop-Residue Biofuel ‘Uncertain’
by Jeremy van Loon (Bloomberg) Demand for fuel made from crop residues including straw and wood is “uncertain” as U.S. and European
June 26, 2010 Read Full Article
France's Total to Buy 17 pct Stake in U.S. Amyris
by Dominique Vidalon(Reuters) Total, Amyris to build biomass-based fuels partnership. French oil group Total said on Wednesday it will buy a
June 26, 2010 Read Full Article
First Commercial-Scale Algae Production Incubator
(National Algae Association) The National Algae Association, a 501(3)6 non-profit association, located in The Woodlands, Texas is starting a new algae production incubator
June 25, 2010 Read Full Article
Will the BP Gulf Tragedy Spur Faster Adoption of Biofuels?
by Joshua Kagan (GreenTechMedia) ...Although first-generation biofuels account for more than 99% of U.S. biofuel production, there are several hundred
June 24, 2010 Read Full Article
The Song That Never Ends: the Financing of Cellulosic Ethanol
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...The Infinite Loop in financing cellulosic ethanol is the setting of conditions for loan guarantees
June 24, 2010 Read Full Article
Portrait of a Transformative Technology: Qteros and Its Q Microbe
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...McCarthy arrived less than a year ago from a long stretch at Verenium, where he
June 18, 2010 Read Full Article
A New, Improved Outlook for Biofuels
by Martin Mittelstaedt (Globe and Mail) The mania over ethanol as fuel didn’t play out so well for investors last
June 18, 2010 Read Full Article
Smart Bioenergy: Guiding Sustainable Bio-Based Energy and Fuels Development
(Union of Concerned Scientists) The Billion Gallon Challenge: Advanced Biofuels from diverse sources such as grasses and agricultural waste hold the
June 17, 2010 Read Full Article
Renewable Fuels Association Writes to USDA on Proposed Rule on Biorefinery Assistance Guaranteed Loan Program
by Bob Dinneen (Renewable Fuels Association) ...The technology exists to process ethanol from cellulose feedstocks; however, the commercialization of cellulose
June 17, 2010 Read Full Article
Big Oil Can't Get Beyond Petroleum
by Deborah Gordon and Daniel Sperling (Washington Post) ...To hear President Obama tell it, the old 20th century economy, fueled
June 14, 2010 Read Full Article
Grant Support for Teesside Bioethanol Plant
(Evening Gazette) An advanced bioethanol from waste plant, set to be developed on Teesside, has received a multi-million pound boost. INEOS
June 14, 2010 Read Full Article
A Call to Triple U.S. Spending on Energy Research
by John M. Broder (New York Times) The United States is badly lagging in basic research on new forms of
June 11, 2010 Read Full Article
Ignore The Brickbats
by Pramod Chaudhari (Business Outlook India) Leadership isn’t a popularity contest. It involves taking tough decisions that may not go
June 11, 2010 Read Full Article
Importance of Biofuels in Rural Revitalization
Cindy Zimmerman (DomesticFuel.com) The expansion of biofuels will play a significant role in the revitalization of rural America, according to U.S.
June 09, 2010 Read Full Article
Get off the Dope: Supporting Biofuels Prices without Taxes or Subsidies – a Biofuels Digest Special Report
(Biofuels Digest) ... (A)n overview by Digest special correspondent Tim Sklar, "Supporting Biofuels Prices without Taxes or Subsidies," which examines the
June 09, 2010 Read Full Article
Ethanol Startups Hope Oil Spill Opens the Investor Pipeline
by Susan Salisbury (Palm Beach Post) With oil prices hovering around a modest $70 a barrel, coupled with the poor economy,
June 09, 2010 Read Full Article
Shell Takes Stake in Virent; Re-ups with Iogen through 2012; Shell and Its Biofuels Babies in Review
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) It was about a year ago that Shell jettisoned all of its wind, solar and
June 08, 2010 Read Full Article
GM Starts Its Own Venture Capital Firm
(ABC News/Money) General Motors Co. has set up its own venture capital company with $100 million to invest in companies
June 08, 2010 Read Full Article
$540 Million Boosts Brazil’s Ethanol Sector
(Biofuels International) The Brazilian Innovation Agency, FINEP (Research and Projects Financing), and Brazil’s National Development Bank (BNDES) have entered into
June 04, 2010 Read Full Article
DuPont Zeros in on Renewable Energy Sector
by Holly Jessen (Ethanol Producer Magazine) Founded in 1802, DuPont was primarily an explosives company. Today, among the many other
June 04, 2010 Read Full Article
Exxon Bets $600 Million on Algae Biofuel Despite Doubters
by Kambiz Foroohar (Bloomberg) ...In Japan, the U.K. and the U.S., green energy advocates and some well-heeled investors are obsessed
June 04, 2010 Read Full Article
AIM Interview: Solazyme’s Harrison Dillon
by David Schwartz (Algae Industry Magazine) Seven years ago two former college roommates set up shop in a Palo Alto garage,
June 04, 2010 Read Full Article
Biofuels: Putting Pressure on Petrol
by Mark Bünger (RenewableEnergyWorld.com) ...To date, most biofuels and biomaterials developers have focused on lab- and demo-scale studies to improve
June 03, 2010 Read Full Article
Advanced Australian Biofuels
by Nicole Beasdale (National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy, Biofuels Digest) ...Referred to as the NCRIS Biofuels Project, the $15 million
June 03, 2010 Read Full Article
Exxon Could Be the Answer to America's Energy Problems
by Bill Paul (Seeking Alpha) In the wake of the massive Gulf of Mexico oil spill, it’s clear the U.S. needs
June 02, 2010 Read Full Article
Energy Biosciences Institute Issues 2010 Call for Research Proposals
(Energy Biosciences Institute) The Energy Biosciences Institute, a unique public-private research partnership dedicated to exploring the applications of modern biology to
June 02, 2010 Read Full Article
The Big Ask: What Do Biofuels Companies Need from DC, and Why?
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Last week, BP committed $500 million in a ten-year year research program to study “the
June 02, 2010 Read Full Article
Stalled Next-Gen Biofuels Need Help, Firms Say
by Philip Brasher (Des Moines Register) That next generation of biofuels is still stuck in the lab, as the developers have
June 02, 2010 Read Full Article
LANXESS Invests in U.S. Biofuel & Biochemical Company
(Newswire Today!) LANXESS, the world’s largest producer of synthetic rubber, has invested in U.S. biofuel & biochemical company Gevo, Inc. as
June 02, 2010 Read Full Article
Advanced Biofuels Association Launches New Online Series Spotlighting Top Industry News in Washington
(Advanced Biofuels Association) The Advanced Biofuels Association launched a new online video series today. The Clean Fuels Forecast spotlights the top
June 01, 2010 Read Full Article
W2 Energy Purchases Agri-Green Biodiesel
(MarketWire) W2 Energy, a clean energy company is pleased to announce that on May 7, 2010, it signed a Letter of
June 01, 2010 Read Full Article
Brazil: The Bossa Nova of Biofuels
by Will Thurmond (Biofuels Digest) Shell, BP, Bunge, LS9, Dow and Amyris are collectively investing more than $20 billion into advanced,
June 01, 2010 Read Full Article
Khosla Ventures Announces Tony Blair Associates as Senior Advisors
(BusinessWire) Khosla Ventures, a venture assistance firm that focuses on cleantech and information technology startups, today announced a strategic partnership
May 25, 2010 Read Full Article
Next-Generation Biofuels: Near-Term Challenges
by William Coyle (Amber Waves) Next-generation biofuel companies are using a variety of strategies to overcome high initial capital costs,
May 20, 2010 Read Full Article
Gulf Oil Spill Fuels Cries for Replacements, but Can Biofuels Industry scale Up?
by Tom Still (Wisconsin Technology Network) The April 20 explosion onboard the Deepwater Horizon, which killed 11 workers and unleashed
May 18, 2010 Read Full Article
The Name is Bond, part II: Financiers Find Biofuels Financing Options in Bond Market
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...Although equity investors (primarily strategics and venture capitalists) and the government grant market has continued
May 17, 2010 Read Full Article
The Name is Bond: New Concepts in Bond Financing May Break Biofuels Finance Logjam
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) A team from the investment bank Stern Brothers, the law firms Mintz Levin and Kreig DeVault
May 14, 2010 Read Full Article
The Presidential Biofuels Directive: One Year Later, Where Are We?
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...The invite-only meeting, which attracted more than 100 attendees, was structured around two panels, one
May 14, 2010 Read Full Article
Vilsack: USDA Needs to Take Chances
by Jerry Hagstrom (Ag Week) Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said at a White House clean energy forum May 6 that
May 14, 2010 Read Full Article
Biofuels Industry Eyes Growth
by Thom Gabrukiewicz (ArgusLeader.com) ...Tom Vilsack, the president's agriculture secretary, said Thursday that much progress has been made - but
May 12, 2010 Read Full Article
Southeast Asia – the Bio-Based Arabia?
by Per Dahlen (Biofuels Digest) ...Putting all this data together we seen that Southeast Asia requires some 2.7Mbpd, or 135
May 12, 2010 Read Full Article
An Interview with Chris Cassidy, Business and Renewable Energy Advisor to the USDA
by David Schwartz (Algae Industry Magazine) ...When we look at the markets, it will come down to transportation as the
May 11, 2010 Read Full Article
Ethanol Plant Funding Delayed
by Ed Baldridge (NewsSun.com) County commissioners voted 5-0 to withdraw their application for a grant supporting the new ethanol plant project,
May 11, 2010 Read Full Article
Funding for Next Wave of Biofuels Trickling In, Finally
by Katie Fehrenbacher (earth2tech) It was about this time last year that the economic downturn’s effects on the ability of next-generation
May 07, 2010 Read Full Article
The Best Peak Oil Investments, Part V: Algae
by Tom Konrad (RenewableEnergyWorld.com) There are many proposed solutions to the liquid fuels scarcity caused be stagnating (and eventually falling) oil
May 07, 2010 Read Full Article
Future of Cellulosic Ethanol Remains Uncertain
by Mark Steil (Minnesota Public Radio) The idea of a biofuel made from something other than food was one of
May 03, 2010 Read Full Article
The Initiative for Renewable Energy and the Environment Awards over $5.1 Million to 24 Energy Projects at the University of Minnesota
(University of Minnesota) The Initiative for Renewable Energy and the Environment (IREE) recently awarded over $5.1 million to 24 renewable
April 26, 2010 Read Full Article
Website Aims to Forge Ethanol Partnerships
by Kathrine Schmidt (dailycomet.com) A businessman from New Iberia is starting a national website that aims to match renewable-energy investors
April 26, 2010 Read Full Article
Algae Industry Magazine Interview: National Algae Association’s Barry Cohen
by David Schwartz (Algae Industry Magazine) Since forming the National Algae Association over two years ago, Barry has concentrated on
April 23, 2010 Read Full Article
Pickens Encourages Investment in American Energy
by Cindy Zimmerman (DomesticFuel) “When do we stop investing in OPEC and start investing in America?” That’s the question that
April 15, 2010 Read Full Article
America's Biofuel Muddle Coming Up Empty: America Will Have Trouble Meeting Its Ambitious Goals for Biofuels
(The Economist) The renewable-fuel standard released in February by America’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) paints an ambitious picture of biofuels’
April 07, 2010 Read Full Article
University of South Florida Researchers Gain Acclaim for Sustainable Jet Fuel Process
by Jane Meinhardt (Tampa Bay Business Journal) A startup formed when University of South Florida researchers created a patent-pending catalytic
April 07, 2010 Read Full Article
Uiversity of Nebraska at Lincoln Team Looks to Tap Algae for Energy
by Kevin Abourzk (Lincoln Journal Star) But algae? A team of University of Nebraska-Lincoln researchers is working to extract oil from
March 25, 2010 Read Full Article
Highlands County, FL, Still Waiting for Biofuels
by Gary Pinnell (Highlands Today) In April 2008, Congressman Tim Mahoney told county commissioners that Highlands was poised to become
March 24, 2010 Read Full Article
Biofuels Association of Zambia Urges Govt to Set up Biofuels Fund
by Mutale Kapekele (The Post Online) The government should set up a biofuels fund, Biofuels Association of Zambia (BAZ) chairperson
March 23, 2010 Read Full Article
The Shell Game: What’s up with Biofuels’ “Quiet Company?”
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...(T)hough the biofuels industry should, and generally does, reacts with excitement when oil industry majors
March 19, 2010 Read Full Article
Oil Subsidies Could top $500 BILLION
by Jacqui Fatka (Feedstuffs) A study on energy subsidies commissioned by G20 nations found that the world could be spending
March 18, 2010 Read Full Article
Craig Venter: Without Scale, Algae Fuel Companies “Playing”
by Katie Fehrenbacher (Earth2Tech) Craig Venter, considered to be the father of genomics and the founder of synthetic biology startup
March 18, 2010 Read Full Article
Federal Loan Programs Ill-Suited for Cellulosic Ethanol
by Cole Gustafson (Prairie Business Magazine) ... In addition to problems on Wall Street following the collapse of the financial
March 16, 2010 Read Full Article
GreenTrackers Algae Biofuels Company Database Launches
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...Strategic Fit: ...(I)t is important to remember that the original success of 1st generation biofuels
March 16, 2010 Read Full Article
Waiting for Godot: The Financing of Commercial Scale Advanced Biofuels
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ...“Cellulosic ethanol is not the same as first generation ethanol,” (Arnie) Klann (Bluefire Ethanol CEO) noted. “There,
March 16, 2010 Read Full Article
Over There: The Yanks are Coming (同胞, Can You Spare a Dime?)
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) BIO exec VP Brent Erickson ruefully noted in a conference with reporters that the biofuels
March 16, 2010 Read Full Article
Spring Algae Bloom: an Inside Look at the DOE’s New Algal Fuels Consortium, the NAABB.
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) was a cold Wednesday afternoon in January when the news came through that a consortium
March 04, 2010 Read Full Article
Cellulosic Ethanol Support Lags Ambitions
by Naureen S. Malik (Dow Jones Newswires) Makers of cellulosic ethanol warn that ambitious U.S. government goals to significantly boost
March 02, 2010 Read Full Article
Put Transportation Biofuel Commercial Deployment Where It Belongs: USDOT
by Robert Kozak (Advanced Biofuels USA) Contemplating the continued inability of the US to meet the biofuels and advanced biofuels
February 25, 2010 Read Full Article
Algae Investment Trends – Advanced Biofuels Insight
by Will Thurmond (Biofuels Digest) The global biofuels industry is entering a new decade of emerging opportunities and considerable challenges
February 17, 2010 Read Full Article
Will China Eat America's Lunch in Cleantech?
by Vivek Wadhwa (TechCrunch.com and The Washington Post) ...China, in particular, is making massive investments and has a huge advantage
February 11, 2010 Read Full Article
Testimony of Energy Secretary Steven Chu before the US Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
(January 21, 2010) ...It is imperative that government provide R&D funding, especially at the front end when private investments would
January 22, 2010 Read Full Article
Cellulosic-Ethanol Mandate Faces Snags
by Naureen S. Malik (Wall Street Journal) Cellulosic-ethanol production, a cornerstone of the U.S. government's plan to curb greenhouse-gas emissions, is earmarked
December 29, 2009 Read Full Article
Growth Stage Financing for an Algae Company
by Todd A. Taylor (Fredrikson & Byron) From his presentation at the Algae Biomass Summit in October 2009, Todd Taylor
December 28, 2009 Read Full Article
Bloomberg Acquires Data Provider New Energy Finance
Bloomberg L.P., has acquired New Energy Finance, a global leader in providing news, data and analysis on renewable energy, carbon
December 10, 2009 Read Full Article
Inter-American Development Bank Publishes Biofuels Sustainability Scorecard
The Sustainable Energy and Climate Change Initiative (SECCI) and the Structured and Corporate Finance Department (SCF) of the Inter-American Development
December 04, 2009 Read Full Article
Origin Oil CEO Develops New Ideas for Financing Biofuels
In a presentation called "This is 1992," Riggs Eckelberry compares the state of the advanced biofuels industry to that of
December 03, 2009 Read Full Article
A Global View from this Capitol Hill Powwow
by Sam Hopkins (Green Chip Stocks) ... Hermann Scheer is something like a Founding Father of international clean energy policy
December 03, 2009 Read Full Article
Big Energy Collaborations Seen to Jump-Start Emerging Biofuels Technologies
by Bruce V. Bigelow (XconomySanDiego) As startups developing next-generation biofuels emerge in San Diego, Boston, and elsewhere, a business model
November 22, 2009 Read Full Article
Renewable Fuels Association Concerned about Flaws in DOE Loan Program
Dear Secretary Chu: The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), the national trade association representing the U.S. ethanol industry, is writing to express
October 29, 2009 Read Full Article
Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and Cleantech Group Announce Launch of Government Funding Resource
The publicly available tool--driven by Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati content--aggregates and frequently updates the numerous financing opportunities, such as
October 29, 2009 Read Full Article
The BB Gun – the DOE’s “BB” Rating Requirement Blasts Diversity in Clean Energy Development
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Washington, the US Department of Energy is requiring that to receive DOE loan guarantees
October 27, 2009 Read Full Article
Biofuels Producers Warn They Are Going to Fall Far Short of Federal Mandates
by Jessica Leber (New York Times Climatewire) The emerging cellulosic biofuel industry, stung by frozen credit markets, ineffective federal loan
October 10, 2009 Read Full Article
Biofuels Digest Publishes 5-part Series on the New Rules for Financing Bioenergy
Biofuels Digest published a 5-part series on where the industry is obtaining financing in the year since the seizure of
September 23, 2009 Read Full Article
Considerations for the Future of the Biofuels Market
By Michael Harris ----- BioWorld sees a number of dynamics that have the capacity to impact and define the future
May 12, 2009 Read Full Article
University of California Berkeley, the University of Illinois and the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab Join Research Effort
(British Petroleum) BP today announced it has selected the University of California Berkeley and its partners the University of Illinois,