Joint-Venture Aims for Biodiesel
A Seattle-Houston joint venture could be producing 100 million gallons of biodiesel by 2010.
Compiled by staff
Published: Nov 23, 2007
Two companies - Targeted Growth from Seattle, Wash., and Green Earth Fuel of Houston, Houston, Texas - announced a joint venture this week that aims to be producing 100 million gallons of biodiesel from a new strain of camelina. The joint venture - to be called Sustainable Oils - expects to raise its needed crop working with Montana farmers.
The crop - a low-input oilseed - could produce more oil and grows well in the dry climate in rotation with other crops like wheat. Green Earth has a new processing plant in Texas capable of making 90 million gallons of biodiesel per year. It plans on adding a plant in, or close to, Montana in the next two years, according to press reports. The move to use camelina would shield the venture for rising soybean oil prices too.
The move could make camelina a viable source of biodiesel and the venture reports it will offer contracts to farmers competitive with other crops. The aim is to work with 30 to 50 farmers in the first year. That could expand to several hundred in the following years. They expect move of the camelina to be grown in Montana, but some could be grown in Eastern Washington, Wyoming and the Dakotas.
The companies said they will have to convince farmers it makes sense to plant the crop (which they plan to do by offering a good return). Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., and Jon Tester, D-Mont., were on hand for the joint-venture announcement. During the announcement there was apparently talk about Baucus and Tester pushing to offer crop insurance for camelina.
Permalink: Click here
Tagged: biodiesel, wheat, soybean, insurance
|