Biofuels >> Seaweed off Florida’s coasts will attract growing attention as a viable future biofuel. Biofuels research has focused on terrestrial plants that must often compete for land with agricultural production. Marine ecosystems are an untapped resource that account for over 50% of the global biomass. Seaweeds themselves can produce more biomass per square meter than fast growing sugar cane. Kelp, rich in carbohydrates and soluble sugars, is a prime candidate. Various biochemical manufacturing processes can be used to produce ethanol and methane from kelp, as well as other high value substances like pigments and phenols. The chemical composition of Laminaria digitata does vary seasonally, however, and is best harvested when carbohydrate levels are at their highest to ensure optimal sugar release for biofuel production. -- Science Daily: Seaweed may prove a viable future biofuel. (Jessica Adams, Aberystwyth University), 03July2011 >> Florida’s forest products industry will die off unless new uses for wood and woody biomass are developed. Biofuels promise to be one answer. One paper products manufacturer predicts that, ultimately, his firm will become “an energy company with paper as a byproduct.” Many of the current technologies for converting biomass to biofuel use sugar as a feedstock -- “sugar is the new oil” -- raising the prospects for Florida's forest and sugar interests to snare a small share of the global biofuels market from the growing dominance of biomass-rich Brazil. Without biofuels, the shrinking demand for wood products (except toilet paper) will lead to a sell-off of timberland to developers and enormous damage to the state’s ecology. “We need biorefineries to keep timberland ownership profitable” asserts a forest industry leader. -- Biofuels Digest: Biofuels the white knight for the pulp and paper industry? (Jim Lane), 18Feb2011 Financial Times: Drop in lumber futures foretell weak future for U.S. construction industry (John Authers), 21-22May2011 >> Biorefinery in Vero Beach will be one of the first to produce large quantities of cellulosic ethanol from waste material. INEOS Bio’s new facility, scheduled to begin operation in 2012, will produce 8 million gallons of ethanol and 6 megawatts of electricity per year from construction and municipal solid waste, forestry and agricultural waste. Located at a former citrus processing plant, the biorefinery will employ a microorganism that ferments syngas -- produced from virtually free waste feedstock -- directly into high value ethanol. The technology allows biorefineries to be built anywhere in the world where there is waste, providing jobs and locally-sourced renewable energy for urban and rural communities. The Vero Beach facility will produce enough renewable electricity to power about 1,400 homes. -- Biofuels Digest: INEOS Bio breaks ground on landmark advanced biofuels facility in Florida (Jim Lane), 10Feb2011 >> Florida farmers will be able to provide for their own farm-based fuel needs by devoting roughly 5-7 percent of their land to soy beans and other biodiesel feedstocks, according to an Agricultural Research Service study. While many feedstocks remain too expensive for large scale biofuel production to be competitive, small on-farm distilleries can be operated at low enough cost to reduce what farmers pay for their fuel. -- Biofuel Digest: Agriculture will give biodiesel a big push. (Jim Lane) 07Feb2011. >> Florida will be the location for many of the 560+ new biorefineries slated to be built to produce 36 billion gallons of biofuels by 2022, according to the USDA. The expansion of biofuels capacity will be an economic boon for Florida’s small rural counties able to produce large amounts of biomass feedstock. The USDA plan is almost entirely dependent on two regions – the Midwest and the Southeast – which will produce 93 percent of the overall target. Both regions have large concentrations of biomass near the proposed biorefineries, and the Southeast has a relatively long growing season. -- USDA: Biofuels Production Research Report: A USDA Regional Roadmap for Meeting the Biofuels Goals of the Renewable Fuels Standard for 2022. 23June2010 >> Lack of clear energy policy will cause Florida to lag in the development of renewable sources and expose consumers to the risk of wild price swings. For two consecutive years, the state legislature failed to pass energy bills that would provide incentives for utilities to expand their use of renewables. Indecision on the part of Florida’s lawmakers and regulators led to the collapse of one highly touted deal that would have introduced large scale solar energy into the Tampa Bay area. The lack of a well-defined policy will have negative economic consequences for the state. Without renewables, Florida will face diminishing options for energy sources. Air quality concerns will rule out new coal-fired generators and nuclear power must still contend with serious cost and safety issues. Over-reliance on natural gas will expose the consumer to volatile energy prices. -- St. Petersburg Times: Lack of state leadership kills TECO's big solar plant project(Robert Trigaux), 03June10 >> The high price of environmental cleanup will alter the cost-calculus of various energy sources. As the price of fossil energy rises, production will demand ever more expensive environmental trade-offs. Fossil fuels will no longer appear so cheap, compared with biofuels and solar. -- Huffington Post: The relentless pursuit of extreme energy – a new oil rush endangers the Gulf of Mexico and the planet. (Michael T. Klare), 19May10; Slate: Fracking, oil sands and deep-water drilling (Daniel Gross), 06June10 >> BP disaster will lead to higher oil prices and
increased investment in alternative energy.
Because of the BP calamity, offshore drilling expenses will rise due to
increased liability risk and enhanced safety requirements. More than half of
global oil supplies will be coming from offshore drilling, making oil more expensive
and alt energy a more promising investment. -- Seeking Alpha: Alternative
energy – win, lose or draw? >> The expansion of the alternative energy sector will boost economic growth in a wide range of separate but interconnected businesses -- perhaps as many as 30 different sub-sectors. While wind and solar get most of the attention from the media and financial community, progress is proceeding in geothermal, biomass and biogas, wave and tidal and algae fuel alternatives to coal and oil. Other ventures are at work on smart grid technologies, new forms of energy storage and the manufacturing of energy-saving products and preparing for the coming era of electrified transportation – building electric bikes and scooters and electric-vehicle recharging devices. A new industrial sector will also need a new breed of consultants, lawyers, accountants and insurers who specialize in the unique characteristics of a complex, rapidly evolving part of the economy. -- Altenergystocks.com: Redefining alternative energy – not one business but 30 different businesses (Bill Paul), 10May10 >> Florida’s biomass will be one of the state’s most valuable resources once cellulosic ethanol is produced on a commercial scale. Up to 200 Mgy of ethanol can be produced annually from Florida’s citrus waste, according to UCF researcher Henry Daniell, who has created a 10 enzyme “cocktail” designed to maximize the extraction of sugars from waste biomass. Continued advances in enzyme biotechnology raise the prospect of $2 per gallon cellulosic ethanol. Meanwhile, in 2011, a pilot plant at a Florida pulp mill will begin to use genetically-engineered E.coli bacteria to produce ethanol from wood waste and crops such as sorghum. “I think we’re going to replace more and more of the petroleum with materials we’re growing in the U.S.,” predicts UF microbiologist Lonnie Ingram, who developed the process. The global market for enzymes, yeast and other micro-organisms for ethanol will be $500 million in 2010 with rapid growth thereafter as cellulosic ethanol production takes hold. -- Science Daily:Orange peels, newspapers may lead to cleaner, cheaper ethanol fuel. 21Feb10; Gainesville Sun: UF breaks ground on Taylor ethanol plant. Promise seen for alternative to petroleum, but critics raise environmental concerns. (Nathan Crabbe), 02Mar10 >> Local opposition will thwart plans to build biomass energy plants and frustrate efforts to develop renewable energy resources in Florida. Citing concerns about pollution, noise and truck traffic, community activists will try to block construction of plants that convert wood, crops or waste to energy. --Florida Tribune: Burning down – new energy source is running into trouble. (Bruce Ritchie), 19Mar10 >> The least risky biofuel investments will be the companies with convenient, reliable access to feedstocks. Especially promising near-term are the forestry and waste-management industries. Companies with forest holdings will be able to provide woody biomass either for the production of cellulosic ethanol or for use in co-firing existing coal plants to generate “cleaner” electricity. Companies that own or control municipal waste can get its feedstock free of charge – or even be paid by local governments to take sewage and garbage off their hands. – Alt Energy Stocks: Biofuel strategies for replacing oil (Tom Konrad), 17Mar10 >> Florida's forests will be able to support a 7 percent renewable energy goal for the state, without forcing the industry to boost production or hire many new workers. But a 20 percent goal will lead to dramatic price increases for wood products and cause woodlands to be harvested at unsustainable levels. Planting faster-growing, non-native "energy" crops (such as eucalyptus) will be necessary to meet the greater demand. -- Florida Tribune: State report raises doubts about renewable energy goals. (Bruce Ritchie), 06Mar10 Energy and Economics >> Three alternative energy technologies are on track to significantly change the global energy mix within five to 10 years, predicts the Boston Consulting Group. Advanced biofuels and solar power -- both concentrated and photovoltaic -- will see an accelerating adoption curve as costs become competitive with conventional energy even without subsidies. Onshore wind power will also see steady adoption, but future growth will be stymied by the high costs of energy storage. Offshore wind will depend on subsidies indefinitely . Broader adoption of electric vehicles will depend on a huge investment in recharging infrastructure, and clean coal through effective, low-cost carbon capture and sequestration will remain out of reach for some time. -- Boston Consulting Group: What’s next for alternative energy? November 10, 2010 >> A carbon tax will keep down the price of oil as we near peak production. The age of cheap oil is over, predicts the International Energy Agency, with the price pushing up to $135 a gallon by 2035. The World Energy Outlook, prepared annually by the IEA for 28 national governments, forecasts a steady growth in the consumption of fossil fuels to 107 million gallons a day, further depleting the supply of economically recoverable fuels. To cushion the economic impact of rising oil prices, the IEA (in a radical shift from past positions) forecasts that a carbon tax will actually hold down the increase to about $105 a gallon by accelerating the transition to alternative energy. Lower demand for oil will ease upward pressure on price. -- International Energy Agency: World Energy Outlook, 09Nov2010 >> The Gulf oil spill will threaten a major source of pension funding, as BP reduces its dividends to cover costs of clean-up and compensation. Pension payouts depend heavily on dividends from oil and gas companies and the impact of the Deepwater Horizon calamity on BP’s earnings revealed the extent to which investors are underpricing the risks associated with fossil fuel production. The vulnerability of cash flow to future threats will make it prudent for pension funds to seek rich sources of dividend income that are more reliable. Options appear to be limited, but one of the most promising is alternative energy, provided that ways are found to adequately finance new ventures. -- Financial Times: Don’t rely on oil profits for pensions. (Vivienne Cox), 28Nov2010 >> Reliance on fossil fuels will increase as the energy needs of an expanding global economy will outpace the availability of carbon-neutral alternatives. Accelerating their development will require an investment program on the scale of the Manhattan atom bomb, project, combined with carbon taxes and the reduction of existing subsidies for fossil fuels, estimated to be 12 times those for renewables. One grim scenario envisions a future Miami as present-day Havana with its crumbling facades, chronic power outages and aging automobiles -- a credible outcome if there is no practical back-up plan for dealing with a scarcity of fossil fuels. -- Science: Farewell to fossil fuels? (Martin I. Hoffert), 10September2010 >> Florida will remain vulnerable to future economic downturns because it does not produce enough energy to meet its internal demands. The level of domestic energy production was the key reason why some states continued to grow during the Great Recession, while others -- like Florida -- were hard hit. The economies of energy producing states grew five times the rate of states that were more dependent on imported fuels, according to a study of the 2007-2008 period. While relative prosperity was partly attributed to rising prices, this was not the major factor. Localities that reduced the outflow of dollars for energy costs -- either through the expansion of fossil fuels production, or development of bioenergy and wind, were able to keep their petrodollars home, where they were reinvested to foster local growth. -- Biofuels Digest: How and why did energy producing states skirt the US recession? (Jim Lane), 25Oct2010 >> Algae biotech will diversify the economy of Lee County, if the $10 million in incentives pay off as county officials hope. Algenol Biofuels will operate a pilot facility in Fort Myers that will produce up to 200,000 gallons of ethanol from algae, salt water and CO2 in the company’s propietary photobioreactors. Dow Chemical is pursing a joint venture with the company in Texas to evaluate algae as a potential source of high-end plastics. Algenol has also partnered with Florida Gulf Coast University to provide opportunities for grad and undergraduate students to acquire knowledge and experience in the field of biofuel technology. The county’s investment has already seen a multiplier effect as Algenol employees, moving from Maryland and the east coast of Florida, buy homes and construction companies are hired to build the facilities. -- Biofuels Digest: Old values, new technology meet as Algenol project ignites growth in SW Florida (Jim Lane), 21Oct2010 Solar Energy >> The commercialization of solar power in Florida will depend on reducing costs of installation, not on any further improvements in basic technology. Streamlining and standardization of procedures could cut costs of solar power in half, making it a viable option without subsidies. While installations are now custom-designed for each site, modular “plug-and-play” designs will enable economies of scale and simplified permitting will reduce paperwork delays. -- Scientific American: The missing link in wider adoption of solar power? Electricians. (Peter Behr, Climatewire_ 09Oct2010 >> Legislators’ inertia will cost Florida its chance to become a leader in solar power. Other states (such as Oregon and Arizona) are attracting major new solar projects that could have been built in Florida had Tallahassee passed legislation that was friendly to the industry. -- Orlando Sentinel: Slow-go for solar industry – as FPL finishes solar plant on Space Coast, Florida lags behind other states in attracting new projects. (Kevin Spear), 07April10 >> Manufacturing will move offshore, taking jobs with them, as intense competition and high silicon prices shrink margins. Less than four years after BP opened a solar panel manufacturing plant in Maryland, it will move the business to facilities in China, India and other low-wage countries, slashing costs by more than 45 percent and shedding 320 domestic jobs. While the company once boasted that BP meant “beyond petroleum”, current management now dismisses the slogan as “nonsense” although continuing to believe that there will be business opportunities in solar power. About 70 percent of the employment in solar energy is not in the factories but in design, construction, installation and maintenance. BP recently certified 150 small businesses as solar system installers. -- Washington Post: BP closing Maryland solar manufacturing plant (Steven Mufson), 27Mar10 |
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