Agriculture dept. earmarks $80M for Range Fuels, cellulosic ethanol
Cellulosic ethanol producer Range Fuels announced today that it landed an $80 million loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to fund construction of a new wood-chip processing plant in Georgia, slated to open in 2010. The deal, which falls under the biofuel provisions of the much-discussed 2008 Farm Bill, is essentially a promise that the department will cover the loan if Range can’t; it also lowers the cost of the project and interest… Continue Reading
Roundup: Cisco’s mixed results, Hitwise election site stats, and more
Cisco does a little better than expected — Sales fell 9 percent in October, compared to a year earlier, the computer networking giant reported yesterday; the company expects sales to drop up to 10 percent this quarter versus the $9.8 billion a year ago. Yet “[i]n our opinion, the U.S. will be the first major country to recover,” chief executive John Chambers said. More at the New York Times.
Hitwise: Yahoo wins presidential election web site traffic —… Continue Reading
Electric cars vs. biofuels: The presidential energy debate heats up
Drawing a sharp contrast with his Democratic rival, John McCain today assailed government subsidies for ethanol production and unveiled a set of proposals aimed at encouraging the development and mass adoption of electric vehicle technologies.
McCain would provide a $5,000 tax credit to consumers who buy zero-emissions vehicles and proportionately smaller tax credits for low-emissions vehicles, like hybrids. In addition, he said he would award a $300 million bounty for a car battery that can “leapfrog”… Continue Reading
Range Fuels ups earlier round to $166M, racing against Mascoma and Coskata
Cellulosic ethanol producer Range Fuels has heaped more than $50 million extra onto a $100 million round we reported two months ago, picking up the support of Passport Capital, Morgan Stanley Capital Group and others.
While the company originally planned to keep the round to $100 million, it appears to have received intense interest in its project. While the round was at first over-subscribed to $130 million, according to Ethanol Producer Magazine, Range has now taken… Continue Reading
It’s in the grass: Oklahoma set to plant first production-scale switchgrass field
No other energy crop has been as closely associated with second generation biofuels as switchgrass. The subject of much fawning coverage in the popular press — though it has yet to be successfully converted into cellulosic ethanol — switchgrass will soon have the chance to provide its renewably energy bonafides in Oklahoma.
The Oklahoma Bioenergy Center (OBC), a partnership between Oklahoma University, Oklahoma State University and the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation of Ardmore, will plant the… Continue Reading
Range Fuels gets $100M more to realize dream of “clean” ethanol
Range Fuels, a company that is searching to become the first to bring a much cleaner kind of alternative fuel, cellulosic ethanol, to market commercially, has raised nearly $100 million in new financing.
Cellulosic ethanol is significant because it’s a much more environmentally friendly way to to produce ethanol. Instead of using corn or sugar, it uses portions of plants and grasses to make ethanol, and has been found by the US DOE to reduce greenhouse… Continue Reading
Biofuel action: Range Fuels breaks ground, Innovation Fuels gets investment, Codexis extends Shell collaboration
Three significant developments today in alternative fuels:
–Range Fuels broke ground on one of the first cellulosic ethanol plants;
–Innovation Fuels took $15.5 million for a New Jersey biodiesel facility; and
–Codexis and Royal Dutch Shell decided to extend their research collaboration for another five years.
We reported in March on a $76 million Federal government grant that Range won preliminary approval for. That grant was part of a $385 million package set aside for six companies.
The Fed has… Continue Reading
Alternative energy companies keep coming: Zeachem, Catilin, Range Fuels, Sopogy
A host of new alternative energy companies have emerged and raised funding.
Here’s a roundup of the latest action, including news at Zeachem, a cellulosic ethanol company; Catilin, a biodiesel company, Range Fuels, another cellulosic company; Sopogy, a solar thermal company; and finally, a note on Greenvolts, a solar company, and a setback at Greenfuel, an algae-biofuel company.
Zeachem — The company, of Menlo Park, Calif. has developed new way to create cellulosic ethanol, which is… Continue Reading
Feds add fuel to fire of cellulosic ethanol trend
Range Fuels, the Broomfield Colo., company racing to build the first commercial plant for producing a more efficient form of ethanol, got closer to that goal after being awarded a $76 million grant by the U.S. Department of Energy.
This is significant because cellulosic ethanol, made from crop waste, switchgrass, woodchips, and other bio refuse, is much more efficient and cleaner than regular corn ethanol, and could help the nation in its quest for alternative energy… Continue Reading
Range Fuels, cellulosic ethanol start-up, looking for cash
Range Fuels, a Broomfield, Colorado start-up trying to produce a more efficent type of ethanol for fuel purposes, is looking for more cash and has decided on the location its first production facility, VentureWire reports today (sub required)
The company was formerly known as Kergy, which VentureBeat first reported here, when Khosla Ventures invested $3.3 million. Later, we explained how it is betting that its “thermal conversion” method, which breaks down organic matter with heat and… Continue Reading