Introduction to Jatropha & Its Advantages

Jatropha

It is a perenial shrub suited to tropical and sub-tropical climates with 50 years life span. Jatropha starts bearing seeds after 2 years of planting. Seeds (with shell) have an oil content of 32% - 35%. About 3 Kgs of seeds give 1 Kg of oil. 1.05 Kg of oil is required to produce 1 Kg of biodiesel. Biodiesel produced from Jatropha oil can be blended upto 20% with petro diesel without modifying the engine. The oil companies have agreed to buy all the biodiesel produced in the country @ Indian Rs. 25.00 per litre at 20 locations in India.

Advantages of Jatropha

• Easy to establish, grows quickly, hardy and requires minimum care
• It grows in flood-free wasteland. In fertile land it gives higher yields
• Plantation of Jatropha in rural areas helps in:
  Employment generation
  Sources of alternate energy
  Increased earnings
• Plantations are long term and the plants have multiple uses
• Reclamation of wasteland and degraded land
• Suitable for preventing soil erosion including jhum fallows
• It is not a competitor to any crop; rather, it increases yield
• The micorrhizal value in Jatropha roots helps in getting phosphates from soil – a boon for acidic soil
• Improves soil fertility by fallen leaves throughout their life cycle
• Possesses medicinal as well as other multiple uses
• Generates net income for 30-35 years @ Indian Rs.10,000/acre/year approx. from 4th year onwards

Soil & Climate

• A tropical species – grows well in subtropical conditions
• It grows almost everywhere except waterlogged conditions and flood prone areas
• If the rising water table engulfs the major root system and continues for a considerable period, the plant is likely to die

Variety

• No recommended variety as yet for the north east region of India. However, the variety grown in NE India is found to be productive
• Female:male ratio of flower, which is indicative of productivity, is 1:12 compared to 1:16 to 1:20 in other states of India

Jatropha Planting Practices

Propagation: Propagated in mass scale both by seeds as well as stem
cutting

Seed rate: 2 – 2.5 kg seeds required per acre.

Planting: Spacing 3m x 2m.

Aftercare: 2 – 3 weedings are necessary.

Pruning: To give a bushy shape, plant should be trimmed during spring
(February-March upto 5 years). After that, plant should be
pruned back above ground level once in 10 years.

Manuring: While planting, compost @ 2 kg/ft. should be applied.
Depending on soil type NPK should be applied
near the crown following ring method.

Intercropping: Some shade-loving plants like Roulfia serpentina, Asparagus
racemosus, Kaemferia galanga, Homalomena aromatica,
Smilex china , etc. can profitably be grown under Jatropha.
Vanilla can also be cultivated under it successfully.

Economic Life & Yields

Economic life: The plant survives upto 50 years if root zone does not come in contact with rising water table and continues for longer time.
Normally, the economic life is considered to be 35-40 years.

Yield: Fruiting starts from 2nd year but commercial harvest is obtained from 3rd year only. Average seed yield of well grown Jatropha are as follows :

Year of Planting	Per Plant Yield Kgs	Per Acre Yield Kgs
2nd Yr - 3rd Yr	0.5 - 1.0	400
4th Yr	1.5 - 2.5	1500
5th Yr - 10th Yr	2.5 - 5.0	2600

The economics of plantation for the North Eastern Region of India will be shortly added.

How to Increase Profitability

Productivity & Profitability can be increased by

• Pruning main stem upon 1.5m growth for profuse branching and higher seed yield
• Foliar spraying with growth promoters for higher yield of seeds and oil
• Ensuring maximum exposure to sunlight for enhancing seed yield

Note: Jatropha should not be taken as highly profitable cash crop if the value of byproducts and other advantages are not considered.

Japan takes a chip out of the biodiesel market

A Japanese government-affiliated research institute has developed technology for creating a diesel fuel from materials such as grass cuttings and wood chips.

Similar technology exists for bioethanol fuel for petrol cars, but the research would be a world first for diesel vehicles.

The Research Institute of Innovative Technology for the Earth (RITE) is aiming for commercial production by 2010. RITE was established in 1990 by the government and leading Japanese firms in such industries as automobiles and power.

The biodiesel fuel uses butanol made using genetically modified microorganisms. The biobutanol is created by cultivating a number of microbes and adding sugar produced by breaking down plant fibres such as grass and tree cuttings, wood and rice straw.

Biodiesel fuels have been made from materials like coconut and tempura oils. There has been competition among RITE, BP of the UK, US company DuPont and others to create a biodiesel fuel from plants. RITE has already applied for an international patent on the technology.

Biodiesel in India -

Mahindra & Mahindra is all set to launch its first biofuel-powered vehicles for commercial use by this year-end. The company is confident of fitting the new engines in all its existing models. The company is at the advanced test phase for B-100 (bio diesel) engines.
ICICI Bank is planning to finance Jatropha cultivation. State Bank of India, State Bank of Hyderabad and Andhra Bank have also announced plans to finance the cultivation. Government of AP proposed to implement the scheme in all the districts.

Price Policy for BioDiesel : Public sector oil firms have announced a price of Indian Rupees 25 (US$ 0.56) per liter (inclusive of taxes and duties) for procuring bio-diesel extracted from non-edible oilseeds for mixing with diesel. The program to sell diesel mixed with non-edible oil extracted from Jatropha Curcas and Pongamia Pinnata, which could reduce India's import dependence, but would take 4-5 years to launch on commercial scale. It will take time for adequate quantities of Jatropha Curcas and Pongamia Pinnata to be planted and oil extracted for mixing biodiesel in diesel.

Bio-Diesel Credit Bank : Petroleum Conservation Research Association (PCRA), www.pcra.org, launched Bio-Diesel Credit Bank. It will co-ordinate activities relating to Carbon Credit.

Field Trials : Several Field trials have been performed.

1. Indian Oil Corporation, (IOC) had placed an order of 450 kiloliters of bio-diesel in 2004, for field trials with the Indian Railways and State Roadways. IOC will be able to supplement 5% of diesel with bio-diesel by 2007.

2. The first phase of the project, by Daimler-chrysler India, in 2003-04, saw production of the indigenous biodiesel and completion of road trials on two C-Class Mercedes-Benz cars. The cars, powered by pure (neat) Biodiesel, traversed the rugged terrain of the country in April-May of 2004, and travelled over 5,900 kilo meters under very hot and humid conditions.

3. The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has encouraged country's biggest truck and bus makers, Tata Motors and Indian Oil to take its biofuel project to the next stage, for testing its vehicles on bio-diesel developed from jatropha plant. Tata's company buses are running on BioDiesel for last few years.

BioFuel Policy : BioFuel policy is being prepared.

1. Centre has not yet cleared bio-fuel policy. The Center was likely to come up with a clear-cut bio-diesel policy by early 2006, after the Energy Policy Committee submited its report to the government by November 30, 2005. An in-principle approval is expected to be given by that time, which will be worked into a formal bio-fuel policy later. The report from the committee is expected to make specific proposals which will then be forwarded to the Energy Co-ordination Committee for final acceptance by the government.

2. Zero excise duty for BioDiesel : BioDiesel is classified as Methyl or Ethyl Ester of Vegetable oils. Excise duty on these is zero. However, it attracts State VAT.

3. Govt to assist, encourage states in bio-diesel production : The government will assist states promote Jatropha cultivation for increasing bio-diesel production in the country under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, the Rajya Sabha was informed on 7 Dec 2005.

4. Andhra Pradesh State Government Introduced Draft Industrial Policy : The Andhra Pradesh government has introduced a draft biodiesel policy to facilitate both investors and farmers to plant oil-bearing trees in 1.5 million acre in the next few years. Also, a risk fund of Indian Rupees 2 Billion is expected to be created, as loan to the state government, to support small and marginal farmers with maximum five acre land holding. There is also a proposal for constituting a biodiesel board, which would be an autonomous board for integrated development of jatropha cultivation and bio-diesel oil in the state. The proposed board, having legal authority, will monitor the tripartite agreement signed between the stake holders, besides assisting, encouraging, and promoting jatropha cultivation, according to the officials involved in preparing the draft policy said. Following the constitution of policy, the government is determined to promote contract farming for buyback of jatropha seeds. The minimum buy-back price will be fixed considering the different variables including the quality and quantity of the produce. A special department called the Rain Shadow Area Department has been created as a special purpose vehicle for planning, coordination, monitoring and implementation of the biodiesel program.

Production Plans : Number of companies are planning to set up new units.

1. Costal Energy Limited is an Indian Public Limited Company in the process of setting up a Large State of Art Bio Diesel Production Plant in India. The Company is on schedule to go full scale Commercial Production by July, 2007. It is setting up a one hundred thousand Tons per annum Bio Diesel plant in Falta SEZ, Kolkata, West Bengal. It is embarking on a mission to setup a large Bio Diesel plant using proven world class technology adhering to International standards. The Bio Diesel produced by us will be to EN & ASTM specifications only. Our fully automated plant will be located in Falta Special Economic Zone, Kolkata West Bengal, India.

2. Cleancities Biodiesel India Limited is an Indian Public Limited Company in the process of setting up a Large State of Art Biodiesel Production Plant in India.The Company is on schedule to go full scale Commercial Production by July,2007. Cleancities Biodiesel India Limited is setting up a Two hundred fifty thousand Tons per annum Biodiesel plant in Visakhapatnam SEZ, Andhra Pradesh.

3. Kochi Refineries Ltd (KRL) is setting up a pilot plant with a US firm to extract biodiesel from rubber seed oil. An R&D exercise, the company proposed to look at the feasibility of the project and would initially have a pilot plant set up with a daily capacity of 100 liters. The company has initiated studies into the availability of rubber seed oil from neighboring Tamil Nadu, especially from the Nagercoil belt.

4. Another Kochi-based company, TeamSustain Ltd, a division of US-based Dewcon Instruments Inc, is in talks with a US firm for setting up a biodiesel plant in Kochi.

5. Pune-based Shirke Biohealthcare Pvt. Lld., is setting up a refinery, with a capacity to process 5,000 liters biodiesel per day from Jatropha oil. The refinery will also produce 1 MW power from the oil cake, apart from natural gas which will be used to run the power plant.

6. Renewable energy company Bhoruka Power Corporation Ltd, has received a grant of US$ 100,000 from the US government to conduct a detailed feasibility report for a bio-diesel project in State of Karnataka. The study envisages use of Neem or Pongamia non-edible oilseeds for production of bio-diesel as well as power.

7. The Southern Online Biotechnologies Limited, which is setting up a bio-diesel project in Andhra Pradesh, has signed MoU with several government bodies and non-governmental organisations, for procuring raw material like Pongamia Pinnata (Karanja or Kanuga) and Jatropha seed. The oil extracted from this seed is used to produce bio-diesel. The company is setting up the bio-diesel project at an estimated cost of Indian Rupees 150 million at Choutuppal in Andhra Pradesh, with technology from a German company, Lurgi. The plant capacity is 30 tons per day or 10,000 tons per annum. It would require around 100 tons of seeds per day. The annual requirement of seeds is around 32,000 tons. As the current availability of seeds in the state is less than 4,000 tons, company will use other raw materials like acid oils, distilled fatty acids, animal fatty acids and non-edible vegetable oils like neem, rice bran etc,

8. Jain Irrigation System Ltd, has plans to set up a Indian Rupees 480 million large-scale commercial bio-diesel plant, with a capacity of 150,000 tons per day in Chattisgarh by 2008. R&D work is being carried out in a 3 tons per day biodiesel pilot plant at Jalgaon, built at a cost of Indian Rupees 5 million. This will be followed by another bio-diesel plant with a capacity of 10 tons per day at Jalgaon. The current concern in the biodiesel industry is finding adequate farmland to make sure our industry receives a regular supply of feedstock.

9. Nova Bio Fuels Pvt. Ltd, has set up a Indian Rupees 200 million, biodiesel plant with a capacity of 30 tons per day in Panipat in 2006. The plant would also supply glycerine to local pharma companies.

10. Naturol Bioenergy Limited is setting up an integrated biodiesel facility in Andhra Pradesh. The 300 tons per day biodiesel plant will come up in the port town of Kakinada at an estimated cost of Indian Rupees 1.4 billion and would be a 100 per cent export-oriented unit. It is now going in for Backward Integration with Jatropha Plantation.

11. An Indian Rupees 9 million biodiesel plant, is coming up in Ganapathipalayam village, about 20 km away from Pollachi. KTK German Bio Energies India, is all set to commence commercial production of biofuel. The plant will use rubber seeds for extraction biodiesel.

12. Biodiesel extracted from Pomgamia Pinatta (Karanj) seeds, was commercially launched in Pune in January 2006. The fuel has been produced and marketed by Pune-based Mint Biofuels, Though the plant initially had a capacity of 100 litres per day, it was scaled up to 400 litres per day. The company will set up a Indian Rupees 300 million plant at Chiplun, which will have a capacity of producing 5,000 tons of fuel per day. Plans are afoot to increase the capacity of the plant to 1,00,000 tons within a period of four years.

13. British Petroleum on Feb. 2, 2006, declared that it will fund a $9.4 million project in India to see if biodiesel can be produced from a non-edible oil bearing crop. The project by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh will study the feasibility of producing biodiesel from the crop Jatropha Curcas. The 10-year project will cultivate around 8,000 hectares of wasteland with the crop and install equipment needed for seed crushing, oil extraction and processing, to produce 9 million liters of biodiesel per year. The project will also include an environmental and social impact assessment. TERI will run the project's daily operations.

President of India Planted Jatropha Saplings in Mughal Gardens of Rashtrapati Bhavan (Presidential Palace) : Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam has planted Jatropha sapling in Mugal Gardens of Rashtrapati Bhavan. To begin with 800 plants are being planted for educational purposes to promote the use of herbal plants for extracting oil from which bio diesel can be produced. This is being done in collaboration with G.B. Pant Agricultural University, Pantnagar and National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow. A demonstration of Agricultural implements being operated by bio-diesel was also made before the President. President of India Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam always emphasizes on plantation of Jatropha Curcas.

Every State Government is taking steps to promote Jatropha Curcas and Pomgamia Pinatta.

1. Chhattisgarh : The government has planted in 2005, 80 million saplings of jatropha, a source of bio-fuel, as the state attempts to tap non-conventional energy sources. It has set a target of cultivating jatropha plantations in one million hectares in 2006, covering 20,000 hectares in the first phase. The government would work with NGOs for starting 350 jatropha nurseries, each spread over a maximum of 500 hectares, in 2005.

2. Andhra Pradesh : State has taken the lead in Jatropha Plantation. The state government has set up a separate department for bringing into productive use the 728,000 hectare cultivable wasteland available for cultivation of Jatropha plantation for production of bio-diesel. The state government is drawing up a roadmap, which will see the involvement of oil majors like Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and Reliance Industries, to make the state the biggest producer of bio-diesel. It is planning to bring between 4 and 5 million acres of land in seven to eight districts of the state under biodiesel plantations and ensure that micro-irrigation is used in a big way in these areas. This will change the ecology of the area.

3. Tamil Nadu : Underutilised lands could turn into fertile farms and farmers can be assured of a price for their produce. This is a project to produce 100 per cent biodiesel from jatropha. D1-Mohan Bio Oils Limited (a joint venture of Mohan Breweries and Distilleries and U.K.based D1 Oils Plc) plans to bring one lakh hectares under jatropha cultivation in Tamil Nadu. Indian Overseas Bank signed an agreement with Coimbatore based Classic Jatropha Oil (India) Ltd for promoting cultivation of jatropha curcas in Tamil Nadu under contract farming. Classic Jatropha Oil, a subsidiary of Tirupur based major knitwear exporters, has been involved in developing the Jatropha cultivation for a long time.

India's vehicular pollution is estimated to have increased eight times over the last two decades. This source alone is estimated to contribute about 70 per cent to the total air pollution. With 243.3 million tons of carbon released from the consumption and combustion of fossil fuels in 1999, India ranked fifth in the world behind the U.S., China, Russia and Japan. India's contribution to world carbon emissions is expected to increase in the coming years due to the rapid pace of urbanisation, shift from non-commercial to commercial fuels, increased vehicular usage and continued use of older and more inefficient coal-fired power plants.

Major Players in the Field

1. D1 Oil plc. : A UK producer of green fuel, Newcastle-based D1 Oil plc, has 10,000 hectares of the crop planted in India and its target of 267,000 hectares by the end of 2006 is on track.

2. Reliance Industries Ltd. to enter Bio-Fuel : Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) is planning to enter the bio-fuel segment in a big way. To begin with, the company has earmarked 200 acres of land at Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh to cultivate jatropha, which can yield high quality bio-diesel. The area of cultivation will be increased to many thousands of acres depending on the progress of the project. The project is being implemented by Reliance Life Sciences, a subsidiary of RIL.

3. Godrej Agrovet plans Indian Rupees 5 billion for bio-fuel projects : Godrej Agrovet Ltd is planning to invest over Indian Rupees 5 billion, for jatropha and palm oil cultivation in the states of Gujarat and Mizoram. The company would cultivate jatropha or palm oil according to the nature of the waste land in these states. According to industry sources, Godrej Agrovet would invest Indian Rupees 2.5 billion for bio-fuel plant cultivation along with the palm oil processing and plant cultivation project in Gujarat while it would invest Indian Rupees 2.5 billion for both jatropha and palm oil cultivation in Mizoram. Godrej would be cultivating both jatropha and palm oil in an area over 10,000 acres in Mizoram as per the fertility of the land. The company is also in the process of setting up mills in Walia (Gujarat) at an estimated cost of $ 10 million.

4. Emami group is planning to set up a bio-diesel plant at Haldia, at cost of Rs 1.5 billion. This will be the first large bio-diesel project undertaken in the organised sector in West Bengal, and would initially use palm oil as basic raw-material instead of jatropha. Its capacity would be one lakh tonne per annum and commercial production is expected to begin by early 2008.

5. Several smaller Indian companies are already working towards developing bio-diesel. Companies like Nandan Bioagro and Labland Biotech have tied up with British oil company D1 Oils to produce jatropha and trade in it. The company will encourage hundreds of farmers to cultivate the crop under an arrangement with the company.

A jatropha seed contains 27 to 31 per cent extractable oil. A jatropha plantation over 100,000 hectares is expected to yield 250,000-300,000 tons of crude jatropha oil per annum. It is estimated that an initial 100,000-hectare jatropha farm will yield revenues of $100 million per annum. Reliance is also in talks with Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan Governments, to get access to land for contract farming.

Biodiesel will have a pronounced impact on edible oil prices : Prices of both palm and soy oils will firm up in the coming months, with demand for biodiesel alone grabbing at least six million tons of oils despite the slower growth of the economy.

Rising crude prices : The rising crude oil prices will lead to higher usage of vegetable oils and fats as alternative fuel. If the price of crude is more than US$ 60 per barrel, any food material can be economically converted into BioFuel. Demand for bio-fuels will invariably increase, it is expected that the demand for bio-fuel from vegetable oils and fats will shoot up to 3 million tons a day.

Most of the plants in South East Asia, are based on Palm Oil. This has raised the crude palm oil price and some companies are re-evaluating the viability of the projects.
Crude Palm Oil futures have gone up from 1,300-1,500 ringgit to a new higher range of 1,400 to 1,600. As the period October to February advances, prices will creep towards the upper end of this range. Crude de-gummed soy oil would be in the range of $460-500 per ton free on board, while RBD palm olein will be in the $400-450 band and crude palm oil will be between $370-420 free on board.

Malaysia and Indonesia are the world's largest producers and exporters of palm oil, while Brazil and Argentina are among the top soy oil producers. From mid-2006, the use of soy oil for biodiesel will have a pronounced impact on prices, and the total biodiesel capacity coming on stream by the end of 2006/07 will require 1.6 million tons of soya oil. Edible oil imports by India, the world's leading buyer, in 2005/06 could remain flat at around 5.65 million tons, but imports of soy oil will go up at the expense of palm oil.

India - Biodiesel policy announced

NEW DELHI: Beginning January 1 next year, the public sector oil marketing companies (OMCs) will be purchasing bio-diesel (B100) at Rs. 25 a litre for blending with diesel (HSD) to the extent of 20 per cent in phases.

Unveiling the new bio-diesel purchase policy here on Thursday, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Mani Shankar Aiyar said that to start with, five per cent of bio-diesel, a non-edible oil extracted from `Jatropha' and `Pongamia,' would be mixed with diesel during trial runs. At a later stage, in phases, the B100 blending with diesel is to be increased to 20 per cent. Mr Aiyar noted that automobile engines would not require any modification for using diesel doped with 20 per cent bio-diesel as fuel.

Only those bio-diesel manufacturers who get their samples approved and certified by the oil companies and get registered as authorised suppliers will be eligible for assured purchase of product, the new policy statement said.

Accordingly, starting January 1, 2006, the OMCs — Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited — would purchase, through select purchase centres, bio-diesel that meets the fuel quality standards prescribed by the Bureau of Industrial Standards (BIS).

Te purchase centres are located at Ghatkesar in Andhra Pradesh (also for Jharkhand and Orissa); Mandirhasaud in Chhattisgarh; Bijwasan in Delhi; Kandla in Gujarat; Rewari in Haryana; Devanagunthi and Mangalore in Karnataka; Manmand, Borkhedi-Nagpur, Loni and Vashi in Maharashtra; Bhatinda in Punjab; Sanganer-Jaipur and Salawas in Rajasthan; Korrukupet, Chennai, Narimanam and Karur in Tamil Nadu; and Panki and Amausi-Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh.

The policy stipulates that the OMCs shall buy bio-diesel at a uniform price, as may be OMCs from time to time. "The initial purchase price of bio-diesel by the oil marketing companies will be Rs. 25 a litre,'' it said.

India proposes biodiesel policy

The Indian government has declared a biodiesel purchase policy to replace fossil fuels through non-conventional means of energy.

The declaration follows an announcement in May 2007 to establish enterprise-driven biodiesel production, to test, develop and demonstrate cost-benefit analysis of the programme.

'The salient features of the policy are that the public sector oil marketing companies will purchase biodiesel meeting the Bureau of Indian Standard specifications through their select purchase centres,' Murli Deora, the minister for petroleum and natural gas, says.

The policy was introduced as minsters felt the issue of energy security important in relation to the rapidly expanding Indian economy. A review on energy sources would help sustain the growth in a more environmentally-friendly way, particularly with a focus on using biodiesel.

India's biofuels industry is still in its early stages. Biodiesel demand potential is significant in India. Salil Singhal, deputy chairman of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Northern Region, remarks: 'The development of bio-energy is important for rural, economical and agricultural growth. Bio-energy is critical to India's energy mix.'

Over 30% of India's primary energy comes from non-commercial sources of energy that include agricultural and forest waste, wood chips, animal waste and biofuels made from non-edible oils. The share of such non-commercial energy is second only to coal which accounts for around a third of India's primary energy mix. Bio-energy meets approximately 60% of the domestic energy needs of India, Singhal adds.

Biodiesel manufacturers interested in supplying biodiesel will register with state-level coordinators. Producers proposing to manufacture biodiesel from non-edible oils will be given priority.

Oil marketing companies will decide a uniform delivered price for buying biodiesel, to be frozen for six months with a review following after that. Panchayati Raj institutions would undertake the purchase of biodiesel as a rural business hub activity. The ministry has identified 20 biodiesel procurement centres in nine states.

First US state to impose B20 biodiesel rule

Minnesota's Governor has proposed plans to raise the biodiesel mandate from 2% to 10% in every gallon of diesel fuel sold by 2015.

A B5 blend could take effect next year if approved by legislators. Biodiesel can be burned in a standard diesel engine as pure B100 or in a blend with petroleum diesel. B20 is common is some commercial vehicles in the US.

'Increasing the level of biodiesel in diesel fuel means that more of our energy will come from farm fields rather than oil fields and that's a good thing,' Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty says.

Four other states in the US have biodiesel standards, none above a B5 blend requirement. Critics argue that mandating biofuels is a backdoor attempt of boosting the farming industry. The cost of food could rise as corn and other agriculture supply is diverted away from the food market and into the fuel market.

Canadian company creates canola-based biodiesel

Milligan Bio-Tech, a Canadian biodiesel producer, has created 100% biodiesel from off-grade canola that will enable a car to drive quarter of a mile in around 6.5 seconds at 250mph.

The canola-based biodiesel was used to test-drive a 2007 Corvette jet funny car at Castrol Raceway in August.

'Milligan's 100% biodiesel works very similarly to normal diesel,' Carl Perlinger, the company's business development manager, says. 'Only some minor adjustments to the injectors are required to make sure the car runs on the biodiesel. Canola carries unique lubricity properties that are not visible in other feedstock, making canola one of, if not, the best feedstock to use for biodiesel production.'

Canola-based biodiesel also performs better than animal tallow or soy-based biodiesel during cold weather conditions. Canola-based biodiesel will begin to gel at approximately -14ºC, whereas animal tallow biodiesel will gel at 20 ºC and soy-based biodiesel will gel at near 0 ºC, Perlinger says.

Milligan uses off-grade canola that is not suitable for the food industry.

World's largest soybean-based biodiesel plant opens

The largest integrated soybean-based biodiesel plant in the world has opened in Indiana.

The Louis Dreyfus facility is expected to begin biodiesel fuel production - using the autumn soybean harvest - by early next year. The plant’s capacity will be approximately 250,000 gallons of biodiesel a day (80 million gallons annually), and will produce in excess of a million tonnes of soybean meal each year.

The plant will process soybeans from both county and regional farmers. About 50 million bushels of soybeans, almost a fifth of all soybeans grown in Indiana, will be crushed.

The total capital investment of the facility is $150 million (€110 million) and expects to employ about 70 people.

The company is developing additional biofuel assets in the US, including an ethanol plant in Nebraska. Louis Dreyfus Commodities’ presence in the expanding biofuels sector includes a leading position in the Brazilian ethanol market.

METEX to develop propanediol from biodiesel by-product

METabolic EXplorer (METEX), an industrial biotechnology company, has signed an agreement with the Institut Français du Pétrole (IFP) to accelerate the scale-up of its technology to produce 1.3 propanediol (PDO) from glycerol, a by-product of biodiesel production.

PDO is a bulk chemical used in the manufacture of a new class of polyester fibres as well as coatings and plastic films. METEX has developed a range of technologies to design highly efficient bacteria able to produce existing bulk chemicals from a wide range of renewable bio-based feedstocks. The fermentation methods provide sustainable solutions to the chemical industry, offering significant economic and environmental benefits over oil-dependent chemical processes.

‘Our agreement with IFP is one important step to ensure we are developing the most economic industrial process for the bio-production of PDO. This collaboration strengthens METEX’s ability to develop economic bio-based solutions that are real alternatives to the current petrochemical processes,’ Benjamin Gonzalez, CEO of METEX, says.

METEX has developed cell factories for five important bulk chemicals. These products have applications in fibres, biodegradable materials and second generation biofuels.

The company is also involved in the development of biobutanol made directly from starch. This alternative biofuel is produced in a similar method to ethanol.

Malaysian biodiesel plant contract awarded

Australian-based Mission Biofuels will build a 250,000 tonne a year biodiesel plant using Esterfip-H technology from Axens, a French-headquartered refining and petrochemical technology company.

The plant will be the largest of its kind, and will be constructed at a site adjacent to the current 100,000 tonne a year plant in Kuantan Port, Malaysia, due for completion in October 2007.

Esterfip-H is a heterogeneous catalysed technology for the production of fatty acid methyl esters (FAME). Esterfip-H does not require caustic or mineral acid usage and the glycerin by-product is of high technical grade quality, above 98% purity.

The Mission Biofuels unit will run on crude palm oil (CPO), with Esterfip-H units able to operate on multiple vegetable oils. Mission Biofuels’ biodiesel will be exported to the European market. Malaysia is the world’s largest producer of CPO.

The first commercial Esterfip-H unit was opened in March 2006 by Diester Industrie in Sète, France. A second plant was completed in May 2007 at Perstorp's Stenungsund, Sweden, chemical complex and six more Esterfip-H plants are at different project stages around the world for a cumulative capacity of 1.3 million tonnes a year.

India to replace 10% transport fuels with biofuels by 2017

India will replace 10% of its transport fuels with biofuels in the next 10 years to cut carbon emissions, petroleum secretary M. S. Srinivasan has announced.

India is mixing ethanol extracted from sugarcane in petrol and experimenting with doping diesel with non-edible oils such as jathropha, targeting a 5% ethanol blend. The country consumed 9.3 million tonnes of petrol and 42.8 million tonnes of diesel in 2006-07.

The quantity of ethanol in petrol will be raised to 10% and biodiesel will be tested on a pilot basis.

Certain cautions have been suggested, such as mainland cultivable area should not be sacrificed for growing plants like jatropha as it may impact the country's food security. The success of the biofuels programme will also depend on feedstock prices.

Second generation biofuels, produced from agriculture residue and household waste, will be the next area of research in India.

UK's largest biodiesel plant given green light

ABS Biodiesel, a UK-based biodiesel production company, will start construction of a new biofuel production facility in the UK, following a decision by Bristol City Council planning department on 3 October.

The company will invest over £21million (€30 million) in the 24,500 square foot facility in Avonmouth Docks, which will cover three acres of undeveloped land at Bristol Port.

Avonmouth Port was selected for the plant due to its close proximity to major oil terminals and refineries, as well its location in an area of high feedstock production.

The site will produce approximately 225,000 tonnes of biodiesel, with the capacity of the site enabling a potential increase to 500,000 tonnes. The company has already pre-sold its first and second year capacity.

'We see demand coming from three main areas – retailers which are looking to establish strong green credentials, petrochemical companies which will need to meet renewable fuel legislation, and hauliers, due to ever rising transport costs,' Alan Bailey, business development director at ABS Biodiesel, says.

The 191,000 tonnes of biofuels consumed in the UK is estimated to climb to 2.5 million tonnes by 2008.

Petra Group and Bill Clinton announce jatropha biofuel plan for West Indies

Petra Group, a clean energy technology-focused conglomerate based in Malaysia, plans to create a jatropha plantation in the West Indies to support the biodiesel production facility it also intends to build in the region.

The company describes the initiative as part of a wide-ranging project started by the Petra Trust to create sustainable employment, wealth and eradicate poverty in the region through the establishment of jatropha nurseries, plantations and a biodiesel refinery.

Former US President Bill Clinton and Petra Group's CEO Vinod Sekhar, announced the commitment at the third annual meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative in New York.The estimated cost of the initial five-year programme is $130 million (€92 million).

Petra Group and the governments of the West Indies, starting with St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Guyana, will establish a new venture to manage, administer and benefit from the biodiesel project.

This central body will develop the business plan, select property, commission the plant, distribute the seeds, and manage transportation, aiming for phased development of jatropha plantations.

FCL Biofuels and Prio to launch biodiesel in the UK

UK-based supplier FCL Biofuels has collaborated with European sustainable fuel company, Prio SA, to launch the Portuguese consumer fuel PrioBio in the UK.

The biodiesel will be available from 1 November 2007, assisting forecourt fuel retailers to meet the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO).

By the end of 2007 the partnership's two biodiesel refineries in Romania and Portugal will have a total capacity of 200,000 tonnes, which will reach 400,000 tonnes by the end of 2010.

'The RTFO is the minimum our governments need to be doing to move us into a more sustainable future,' says Colin Walker, MD of FCL Biofuels. 'We see ourselves as the ideal biofuels partner because we control the whole supply chain from plant to pump. We plant the seed, grow it, harvest it, and refine it in one of two, specialist, European-based biodiesel refineries. We then deliver it through our in-house logistics and it's all backed up with our sales and marketing.'

The majority of the company's feedstock is grown in Europe. The crops grown are mostly indigenous: sunflowers in Portugal and rapeseed in Romania.

The RTFO is a requirement on transport fuel suppliers to ensure 5% of all road vehicle fuel supplied to the UK composed of sustainable renewable sources by 2010.

Prio SA is the biofuels division of Martifer Group. The group has earmarked an investment of about €320 million, comprising over 22 thousand hectares of land under cultivation for biofuel feedstock, two biodiesel refineries and its own storage and distribution networks.

Biofuels could dry up water reserves in China and India

India and China's plans to increase biofuel production will deplete their water reserves and seriously impact their ability to meet food demands, a study conducted by the International Water Management Institute says.

China and India, which are expected to account for nearly 70% of global oil demand between now and 2030, are using cheaper biofuels derived from crops to help power their economies, the Institute comments.

'To grow biofuel crops you need to use more water and land,' Charlotte de Fraiture, a scientist at the institute and lead author of the biofuels study, says.

As global crude oil prices excel $80 (€56) a barrel, countries are increasingly relying on biofuels, which produce energy by using organic waste, wood, dung and residues from crops like sugarcane and grains.

China aims to increase biofuel production four-fold from a 2002 level of 3.6 billion litres of bioethanol to around 15 billion litres by 2020, or 9% of the country's projected petrol demand.

To meet their biofuel targets India needs to produce 16% more sugarcane and China 26% extra maize.

'Crop production for biofuels in China and India would likely jeopardise sustainable water use and affect irrigated production of food crops, including cereals and vegetables, which would then need to be imported in larger quantities,' de Fraiture says.

In both countries, biofuels will add pressure on water resources that already are heavily exploited or over-exploited. The report suggests authorities develop dry land rain-fed crops such as sweet sorghum for ethanol and species such as jatropha and pongamia for biodiesel. Such a strategy could help reduce competition for scarce water between the food, feed and fuel uses of crops like maize and sugarcane grown on irrigated land.

India's first biodiesel plant starts production

Naturol Bioenergy, owner of the first biodiesel plant in India, has started producing biodiesel in Kakinada, in the state of Andhra Pradesh.

The facility is expected to produce 30 million gallons of biodiesel a year using Belgian technology and jatropha as a feedstock. Feedstock is imported from Malaysia, Indonesia and Africa.

The company has long term agreements with petroleum intermediaries to export biodiesel to the US and EU states.

Naturol has invested Rs 140 crore (€25 million), 40% of which is financed by equity from venture capital investors, with the remainder from term loans from banks and financial institutions. Naturol has also injected funds to create the required infrastructure to scale up by five times.

Biodiesel Glossary

A-C

Algae – Algae are primitive plants, usually aquatic, capable of synthesising their own food by photosynthesis. Algae is currently being investigated as a possible feedstock for producing biodiesel

B100 – B100 is another name for pure biodiesel.

Biobutanol – Biobutanol is an advantaged biofuel that offers a number of benefits over conventional biofuels. For example, biobutanol has an energy content closer to that of petroleum so consumers face less of a compromise on fuel economy. It can easily be added to conventional petrol due to low vapour pressure and can be blended at higher concentrations than bioethanol for use in standard vehicle engines. DuPont and BP are working together on a major project to produce biobutanol

Biodiesel – Biodiesel is a biofuel produced from various feedstocks including vegetable oils (such asoilseed, rapeseed and soya bean), animal fats or algae. Biodiesel can be blended with diesel for use in diesel engine vehicles.

Biofuel – The term biofuel applies to any solid, liquid, or gaseous fuel produced from organic (once-living) matter. The word biofuel covers a wide range of products, some of which are commercially available today, and some of which are still in research and development.

Biomass – Biomass is biological material, including corn, switchgrass, and oilseed crops, that can be converted into fuel

Bioreactor – A bioreactor is a vessel in which a chemical process occurs. This usually involves organisms or biochemically active substances derived from such organisms

BTL – BTL, or biomass-to-liquid,is a multi-step process which converts biomass into liquid biofuels. BTL is also referred to as second generation biodiesel production. There are many different methods of BTL, but many processes include Fischer-Tropsch, hydrogenation or pyrolysis.

By-product – A by-product is a substance, other than the principal product, generated as a consequence of creating a biofuel. For example, a by-product of biodiesel production is glycerine and a by-product of bioethanol production is DDGS

Catalyst – A catalyst is a substance that increases the rate of a chemical reaction, without being consumed or produced by the reaction. Enzymes are catalysts for many biochemical reactions.

Cetane number – The cetane number is a measure of biodiesel’s combustion quality

Conventional biofuels - Conventional biofuels such as bioethanol and biodiesel are typically made from corn, sugarcane and beet, wheat or oilseed crops such as soy and rape.

D-F

DDGS – DDGS, or dried distillers grain with solubles is a by-product of dry mill ethanol production that is fed to livestock.

Emissions: Emissions are classed as any waste substances released into the air or water.

Enzyme: An enzyme is a protein or protein-based molecule that speeds up chemical reactions occurring in living things. Enzymes act as catalysts for a single reaction, converting a specific set of reactants into specific products.

FAME – FAME, or fatty acid methyl ester can be created by a catalysed reaction between fatty acids and methanol. The molecules in biodiesel are primarily FAMEs, usually obtained from vegetable oils bytransesterification.

Fatty acid: A fatty acid is a carboxylic acid (an acid with a -COOH group) with long hydrocarbon side chains. Feedstocks are first converted to fatty acids and then to biodiesel

Feedstock – A feedstock is any biomass resource destined for conversion to energy or biofuel. For example, corn is a feedstock for ethanol production, soybean oil may be a feedstock for biodiesel and cellulosic biomass has the potential to be a significant feedstock source for biofuels.

Fischer-Tropsch – Fischer-Tropsch is one method of producing biodiesel, from natural gas or syngas from gasified coal or biomass

Fuel - A fuel is described as any material with one type of energy that can be converted to another usable energy.

G-I

Glycerine- Glycerine is a liquid by-product of biodiesel production. Glycerine is used in the manufacture of dynamite, cosmetics, liquid soaps, inks, and lubricants.

GTL – GTL, or gas to liquid, is a refinery process which converts natural gas into longer-chain hydrocarbons. Gas can be converted to liquid fuels via a direct conversion or using a process such asFischer-Tropsch.

Iodine value – An iodine value is a measure of the number of unsaturated carbon-carbon double bonds in a vegetable oil molecule. In liquid biofuel applications this gives a lower cold filter plugging point (CFPP) or cloud point. While this makes it good for use in cooler temperatures, double bonds can allow polymerisation, leading to the formation of lacquers and possibly blockage and damage to engine or fuel train components.

J-L

Jatropha - Jatropha is a non-edible evergreen shrub found in Asia, Africa and the West Indies. Its seeds contain a high proportion of oil which can be used for making biodiesel.

M-O

Methanol – Methanol is an alcohol containing one carbon atom per molecule, generally made from natural gas, with about half the energy density of petroleum. Methanol is used as a component in thetransesterification of triglycerides to give a form of biodiesel.

MTBE – MTBE, or methyl tertiary-butyl ether, is created from methanol and can increase octane and decrease the volatility of petroleum. It is often used as a petroleum additive because it raises the oxygen content of the fuel.

Nitrogen Oxides – Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) are a product of photochemical reactions of nitric oxide in ambient air, and are one type of emission produces from fuels.

Octane number - The octane rating of a fuel is indicated on the pump. The higher the number, the slower the fuel burns. Bioethanol typically adds two to three octane numbers when blended with ordinary petroleum – making it a cost-effective octane-enhancer.

P-R

Palm oil – Palm oil is a form of vegetable oil obtained from the fruit of the oil palm tree. It is a widely used feedstock The palm oil and palm kernel oil are composed of fatty acids, esterified with glycerol just like any ordinary fat. Palm oil is a widely used feedstock for traditional biodiesel production.

Petroleum - Petroleum refers to any petroleum-based substance comprising of a complex blend of hydrocarbons derived from crude oil through the process of separation, conversion, upgrading, and finishing, including motor fuel, jet oil, lubricants, petroleum solvents, and used oil.

Pyrolysis – Pyrolysis is one method of converting biomass into biodiesel, using heat.

Pyrolysis oil – Pyrolysis oil is a bio-oil produced by fast pyrolysis of biomass. It is a dark brown, mobile liquid containing much of the energy content of the original biomass, with a heating value about half that of conventional fuel oil. Conversion of raw biomass to pyrolysis oil represents a considerable increase in energy density and it can thus represent a more efficient form in which to transport it.

Rapeseed - Rapeseed (Brassica napus), also known as rape, oilseed rape or (one particular artificial variety) canola, is a bright yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae (mustard or cabbage family). Rapeseed is a tradition feedstock used for biodiesel production.

RTFO – RTFO, or the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation, is a UK policy that places an obligation on fuel suppliers to ensure that a certain percentage of their aggregate sales is made up of biofuels. The effect of this will be to require 5% of all UK fuel sold on UK forecourts to come from a renewable source by 2010.

S-U

Second generation biofuels – Although definitions vary, second generation biofuels are usually considered to be biofuels produced from biomass or non-edible feedstocks.

Syngas – Syngas is a mixture of carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen (H2) which is the product of high temperature gasification of organic material such as biomass. Following clean-up to remove any impurities such as tars, synthesis gas (syngas) can be used to synthesise organic molecules such as synthetic natural gas (SNG - methane (CH4)) or liquid biofuels such as synthetic diesel (via Fischer-Tropsch synthesis).

Switchgrass – Switchgrass is native to the US and known for its hardiness and rapid growth. It is often cited as a potentially abundant second generation feedstock for ethanol

Tallow – Tallow is another name for animal fat, which can be used as a feedstock for biodiesel production.

Transesterification – The name biodiesel has been given to transesterified vegetable oil to describe its use as a diesel fuel. The transesterification process involves mixing at room temperature methanol (50% excess) with NaOH (100% excess), then mixing vigorously with vegetable oil and letting the glycerol settle (about 15% of the biodiesel mix). The supernatant is biodiesel and contains a mixture of methylated fatty acids and methanol.

V-X

VOC –VOCs, or volatile organic compounds, are air pollutants found in engine exhaust. Bioethanol helps reduce VOC emissions.

Y-Z

Yeast – Yeast is any of various single-cell fungi capable of fermenting carbohydrates. Bioethanol is produced by fermenting sugars with yeast.

How is biodiesel made?

Biodiesel is made through a chemical process called transesterification whereby the glycerin is separated from the fat or vegetable oil. The process leaves behind two products -- methyl esters (the chemical name for biodiesel) and glycerin (a valuable byproduct usually sold to be used in soaps and other products).

What is biodiesel?

Biodiesel is the name of a clean burning alternative fuel, produced from domestic, renewable resources. Biodiesel contains no petroleum, but it can be blended at any level with petroleum diesel to create a biodiesel blend. Biodiesel is simple to use, biodegradable, nontoxic, and essentially free of sulfur and aromatics.