The main activity of Biofuels is the large scale production and exploitation of biodiesel and glycerine following the construction and commissioning of the initial plant.

Biodiesel is produced from vegetable oils and, as an environmentally friendly product, can make a significant contribution towards reducing green house gases and meeting Kyoto targets.



RNS's from BFC can be viewed at:

http://www.uk-wire.com/cgi-bin/index?search_type=3&words=bfc&go.x=17&go.y=8

http://www.biofuelscorp.com/

thanks, mm - looking good for Bastille Day? Stormin'!

A bit of a long read but it is sunday!!

Posted on Sun, Jun. 26, 2005


Indiana plays catch-up in biofuels race

State sets goals for ethanol and biodiesel

By Jenni Glenn

The Journal Gazette


Dozens of communities in other states are celebrating the construction of ethanol and biodiesel plants the source of millions of dollars in investment, jobs and added value to farmers crops. But Indiana has been slow to join the party, said Andy Miller, state director of agriculture.

The state has just one ethanol plant and no biodiesel plants, despite the fact that Hoosier farmers ranked third in soybean production and fifth in corn production in the nation last year.

The state unveiled a new strategy last month designed to encourage agribusinesses to manufacture ethanol and biodiesel fuel in Indiana, Miller said. The state Department of Agriculture and Indiana Soybean Board have set the goal of turning the state into the Texas of alternative fuels. The states strategic plan for agriculture, released May 17, set a goal of producing 100 million gallons of biodiesel and tripling ethanol production in the state by 2010.

Several proposed plants could help steer Indiana in that direction. Indiana Bio-Energy LLC plans to open a $125 million ethanol plant in Wells County by the end of next year. A subsidiary of the Louis Dreyfus Group has proposed a $100 million agricultural-industrial park in Kosciusko County that could eventually include an ethanol plant and a biodiesel plant larger than any currently operating in the country.

Miller said Indiana has been slow to enter the renewable energy field. The state is the last major corn state to have a major presence in the ethanol industry, he said. The states lone ethanol plant, New Energy Corp., is in South Bend and can produce 102 million gallons of ethanol a year, according to the Renewable Fuels Association, a trade association for ethanol producers.

I wont say were late to the game in ethanol, but were pretty close to being late, Miller said. This markets still got a lot of upside potential for growth.

The fuel, made from processed corn, is either mixed with gasoline or used alone to power cars. The nation produced 3.41 billion gallons of ethanol last year, a 21 percent increase from 2003, according to the Renewable Fuels Association.

Biodiesel use also is growing quickly, said Jenna Higgins, spokeswoman for the National Biodiesel Board in Jefferson City, Mo. Biodiesel is made from soybean oil and then blended with diesel fuel to power trucks. An estimated 25 million gallons of the fuel was blended for use last year. Higgins said that was a large increase from the 500,000 gallons used in 1999.

Demand for biodiesel is expected to rise from 30 million gallons in fiscal year 2004 to at least 124 million gallons a year, thanks to a tax incentive that makes biodiesel price- competitive with diesel fuel, according to the Indiana Soybean Board.

Most of the plants producing the renewable fuels are in Iowa, Minnesota, South Dakota and other states in the western Corn Belt, said Wells County farmer Randy Plummer, an investor and member of the board of directors for the Wells County ethanol plant. The first plants headed to the western Corn Belt states, in part, because their corn prices tend to be lower than those in Indiana, said Plummer, who is also a Wells County commissioner. The states also offered incentives such as tax breaks to encourage plant construction, he said.

Progress has been slower in Indiana, Plummer said.

Were, Id say, coming out of the gate, and the rest of the horses are about halfway around the track, he said.

Iowa, the national leader in ethanol and biodiesel production, has 16 ethanol plants and three biodiesel plants, said Lucy Norton, executive director of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association. Seven more ethanol plants and another biodiesel plant are under construction in the state.

To draw those plants to Iowa, state groups organized monthly meetings where experts spoke to potential plant owners about the financing, technology and other aspects of constructing a plant, Norton said. The Iowa Department of Agriculture, the Iowa Corn Growers Association, the Iowa Farm Bureau and the Iowa Department of Economic Development set up the meetings held from 1999 to 2001. Norton said the meetings made the difference in persuading people to invest in plants in Iowa.

It takes a partnership with the state and the industry, she said.

A supply of inexpensive corn is important for making an ethanol plant profitable, said Monte Shaw, spokesman for the Washington, D.C.-based Renewable Fuels Association. Iowa ranked first in corn production and second in soybean production last year, according to Indiana Agricultural Statistics, the state division of the National Agricultural Statistics Service.

Indiana has the ingredients for a successful renewable fuels industry, Director of Agriculture Miller said. The state has the grain needed to support plants, as well as the railroads needed to transport renewable fuels to market.

Indiana is closer to the crucial East Coast market than other Midwestern states, Plummer said. Ethanol is used widely in New York and Connecticut to replace an octane additive in gasoline banned by the states. The states proximity to this market helped make the Wells County plant a viable investment, he said.

The state is staying involved in the development of new forms of bio- energy and improvements on existing technology, Miller said. Purdue Universitys research on bioenergy will help the state stay on the front end of new advances in the field, he said.

Despite being a little late on some of the initiatives, we can still be a leader going forward, he said.

Miller declined to provide an exact number of proposed plants in the state, but he said he hears almost daily from new groups interested in building plants

Not all of the proposals will come to fruition, Plummer said, although he is confident his group will be able to raise $25 million in grants or in the form of second-lien loans, which can be paid off after the buildings mortgage, to pay for the Wells County plants construction. Indiana Bio-Energy LLC conducted a feasibility study to make sure the plant would be profitable and increased the proposed size to ensure it would be, Plummer said. Some of the proposals may not make it past the feasibility study because they would not make money, he said.

The amount of capital needed to enter the industry is growing, Miller said. Large corporations, such as the Louis Dreyfus Group that may build in Kosciusko County, are entering the industry in increasing numbers while the number of investor-funded plants is falling, he said.

Indiana is working to increase the use of renewable fuels as well as production. About 3 percent of the gasoline used in the state has some ethanol blended in it, Miller said. The Department of Agricultures goal is to increase that to 10 percent by 2010.

An increase in usage would raise the price farmers receive for their grain. When consumers demand 100 million gallons of biodiesel fuel, soybean prices rise about 10 cents a bushel, according to the Indiana Soybean Board.

The state already has a convenient way of supplying biodiesel to dealers, the National Biodiesel Boards Higgins said. Countrymark Cooperative LLP, based in Indianapolis, has four biodiesel terminals where the soybean-based fuel can be mixed with diesel directly from a pipeline as it is poured into a truck for transport. There are only 12 such terminals in the country, but dealers prefer to use them instead of mixing their own fuel, Higgins said.

We would consider Indiana a leader in biodiesel because of their strong distribution network and high-profile users, Higgins said. The city of Fort Wayne uses a blend of biodiesel fuel in its diesel trucks.

Most of the biodiesel used in Indiana is manufactured in Ohio or west of Chicago. But there is still room in the growing renewable fuels market for Indiana to become an industry leader, said Michael Ladisch, professor of agricultural and biological engineering at Purdue University in West Lafayette. Ethanol use alone has the potential to increase by 50 percent in the future, he said.

The best time to get in the business is when ethanol is expanding, he said. In other words, the market is increasing, so this is the time to get market share.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ethanol production

Indiana lags behind several of its Midwestern neighbors when it comes to ethanol production. Indiana ranked eighth among the states in terms of ethanol production capacity, calculated in million of gallons produced a year, as of January.

Iowa1,262.5

Illinois816

Minnesota523.6

Nebraska523

South Dakota456

Wisconsin210

Kansas149.5

Indiana102

Missouri100

Tennessee67

Michigan50

North Dakota33.5

New Mexico30

Texas30

Kentucky25.4

California8

Wyoming5

Ohio4

Colorado1.5

Washington0.7

Total4397.7

Source: Renewable Fuels Association

http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/journalgazette/11990974.htm

wilbs

Thanks wilbs, an interesting read.

Cheers, Madison

New York, June 24. (PTI): The UN has launched a new initiative to help developing countries exploit their renewable energy potential, such as fuels derived from agricultural crops.

Under the BioFuels Initiative, the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) will coordinate various activities carried out jointly with other UN agencies, the private sector, NGOs and applied research centres, to build capacity in production, use and trade of biofuels.

Biofuels such as bioethanol, biodiesel and biogas, which are derived from crops such as sugar beet and sunflower, are an ecological alternative to conventional fossil fuels which are not expected to last long.

The UN estimates that petroleum is not expected to last more than 50 years while could last 60 years. But coal reserves could last upto 200 years, according to current projections.

Careless use and consumption of fossil fuels has caused climate change and high concentration of air pollutants in major cities, according to the world body.

I have never quite seen anything as volatile as this share price. Was interested in buying on outlook grounds especially when looking at the price of oil. But now I'm getting scared of it. What on earth causes the wild swings. Do I smell a tipster at work? Talking it up. Principle and idea seem right and should be profitable. McG

McGavock,

Im no expert,but most of last week - right upto close on Friday the mm's were driving this up,taking any stock they could get there hands on,and clearly filling a large order,i feel today has been a big shake and the upward momentum should now continue.
Today must have seen a clean out of some weak holders or T+ trades hoping for a quick buck,only thing for it is to see what the morning brings.

Jams ahead for carmakers


Financial Times, 27 June 2005 - The automotive industry is possibly the most global industry there is, with almost 60m cars and light trucks sold in 2003. In the UK alone, it contributes Pounds 8.4bn added value to the economy, according to the Department for Trade and Industry.

But the big European and North American producers face massive structural problems, pensions deficits, overcapacity, mature markets and falling prices. With a few exceptions, notably Toyota and Honda, carmaking is just not profitable, says Dr Paul Nieuwenhuis of the Centre for Automotive Research. Despite the huge overall volumes, production of many individual models is well below 100,000 per year, "so they just don't make any money," he says. Carmakers will find some relief in the emerging demand from markets such as China, India and Indonesia, but ultimately "they have to start making different types of car", says Dr Nieuwenhuis.

Carmakers must also face up to the challenges of rising oil prices and their products' contribution to air pollution and global warming. Regulatory threats include the EU's end of life vehicles directive, Brussels' emissions trading scheme and congestion charging schemes such as that introduced in London.

A report by Merrill Lynch and the World Resources Institute released earlier this month says: "The global need to address energy security concerns and the impact of climate change on the earth's environment is intensifying pressure on the auto industry to create vehicles with higher fuel economy and lower emissions."

The industry has a number of options, according to the report. These are:

* Create new vehicle types (hybrids such as the Prius)

* Modify traditional vehicles with alternative power sources (hybrid, diesel, hydrogen internal combustion engine etc.)

* Develop new technologies to enhance existing engines and transmissions

* Improve exhaust treatment

* Design lighter vehicle structures

* Shift production toward smaller vehicles.

These trends are going to work in favour of some manufacturers more than others - Ford and GM's focus on SUVs has put them at a disadvantage, while Honda and Toyota's focus on hybrids has left them well-placed.

In the long term, hydrogen fuel cells are seen as the answer to the industry's pollution problems, as they only emit water. However, there are still problems with how to produce the hydrogen and the lack of a hydrogen delivery infrastructure.

As a result, fuel cell-powered cars are unlikely to be on the road until 2020, and will not be widespread until the 2050s, according to Steven Blackman, head of Ernst & Young's automotive unit.

In the meantime, flavour of the month are hybrid cars, which have both electric batteries and a petrol engine, making the car more fuel-efficient and reducing emissions. While Toyota's Prius leads the way, several other hybrid cars are on or coming to market, and Merrill Lynch suggests Hyundai is also well-placed to capitalise on demand for hybrids.

But in the short term, refining existing technologies is a more fruitful way of cutting emissions. These "incremental" technologies are relatively unsung, says Duncan Austin, of Generation Investment Management, but they generate a relatively quick payback.

Companies well-placed in this sector include Borg Warner, a US parts company that derives 70 per cent of its revenues from fuel efficiency products, and Magna International, which has a technology for creating stronger, lighter vehicle bodies.

Ibiden, of Japan, and France's Faureccia make filters that remove the particulates from diesel, and they are also predicted to benefit from the current investment climate, while Aisin Seiki, a Japanese parts maker, is well placed in incremental technologies such as variable valve timing.

Another promising area is in alternative fuels. Biofuels can be added to petrol or diesel engines as a 5 per cent blend with little or no alteration needed in engines or petrol pumps. There is little technical difficulty in running vehicles entirely on biofuels - indeed in Sweden, two-thirds of orders for the new Saab 95 are for the version that runs on 85 per cent bioethanol derived from sugar cane, according to Charles Burt of Olive SRM, a strategic risk consultancy.

As with fuel cells, there is no infrastructure in place. However, a scheme in the north east of the UK, One Green Route, is developing a network of branded forecourts to sell biodiesel to private motorists. There is also great potential for vehicles that can be fuelled at depots, such as council vehicles, buses and commercial vehicles in specialised applications such as airports.

Companies hoping to benefit from moves towards alternative fuels include Biofuels Corp, which floated last year and raised an additional Pounds 32.7m earlier this year. It plans a biodiesel processing plant up and running by September. D1, another biodiesel group that listed on the Alternative Investment Market last October, estimates that by 2010, EU demand for the fuel will be 10.5bn litres. Meanwhile, British Sugar, facing EU reforms that will slash sugar prices, is planning the first bioethanol plant in the UK.

http://www.sustain-online.org/plugins/DocSearch/details.asp?MenuId=1&ClickMenu=&doOpen=1&type=DocDet&ObjectId=MTU2MDM

wilbs

Great post wilbs- Investment in new energies, alternative fuels, etc is a must, regardless of profitability.
http://uk.biz.yahoo.com//050628/323/fm62l.html

Anyone know if there is any research, plans or legislation to do with aircraft using renewable fuels - that must be an enormous market to persuade to use DOO's jatropha beans processed by BFC's plant.

sd

Soya-powered planes promise greener air travel
09:45 26 March 2004
Exclusive from New Scientist Print Edition
Anil Ananthaswamy
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Bernard Tao, Purdue University
David Wardle, University of Auckland
American Chemical Society meeting, Anaheim
Soya oil is just the thing to give aviation fuel a greener future, believe a group of US biochemists.

They say that an aircraft fuel based on soya oil and traditional jet fuel will slash consumption of fossil fuel, and help slow the rise in greenhouse gas levels by using carbon from renewable sources. They will tell a meeting of the American Chemical Society in Anaheim, California, next week how it can be done.

Commercial jets run on a petroleum fuel called Jet A. Like all fossil fuels, it releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere when burnt. Biofuels like soya oil, on the other hand, are "carbon neutral" because the carbon they release came from the atmosphere only recently.

Meanwhile air traffic is a growing contributor to global warming. In 2002 the UK's Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution predicted that air travel could account for nearly 75 per cent of the UK's greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

"If further research fails to dispel current concerns, then, at some stage, commercial aviation is going to need a completely different fuel," says David Wardle, a fuels expert at the University of Auckland in New Zealand. And, he says, biofuel blends could be one answer.

Stumbling block
So far, attempts to create a suitable fuel from blends of jet fuel and vegetable oils have been unsuccessful. One stumbling block is the requirement that aviation fuel stays liquid down to -40 degrees Celsius. Vegetable oils generally freeze at around zero degrees Celsius.

But now biochemist Bernard Tao of Purdue University in Lafayette, Indiana, and his graduate student Shailendra Bist have developed a blend that freezes at -40 degrees Celsius.

They convert fatty acids within the oil into volatile, combustible esters, some of which freeze at higher temperatures and some at lower temperatures.

"Remove the components that freeze at higher temperatures, and you will be left with something that will freeze at low temperatures," says Bist. It is here that they have made the breakthrough.

Crystallised solids
The standard method of removing unwanted esters involves chilling the biofuel and removing any crystallised solids. Repeat this at ever lower temperatures and you create a fuel with a very low freezing point.

But the process can take days, and is wasteful because desirable esters "co-crystallise" out with the unwanted ones. Yields can be as low as 25 per cent.

Tao's team has developed a similar fractionation technology that takes less than an hour and has yields as high as 80 per cent. They are unwilling to discuss details pending a patent filing, but say they can now make a 40 per cent blend of biofuel and 60 per cent Jet A with the right freezing properties.

It is the highest percentage ever reported, says Wardle. The fuel is now being tested on a turbo-prop engine to assess its emissions.

http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn4813

wilbs

Flying the A380 using chip fat must be light years away.

wilbs - very interesting, you old anorak you!

thanks sd. I like to help an old dog when I can.

woof!

Wilbs, do you know when full year resuts are out ? .

I have just called they jimmy and they are out 14th july.
wilbs

Cheers wilbs , im in ...

Nice one jimmy. Hopefully you will be rewarded soon.

Wilbs i just bought the company !

They wern't you 87 shares were they jimmy? That doesn't value the company at much!!!
Are you sure you have not been throwing you money down the toilet?