Teru Talk Newsletter
Volume II, Issue
5, January 30,
2012
Teru Talk by Michael
Theroux (pronounced
"Terú")
Teru's Trash Talk
Not too long ago, less than
a decade, if you wanted to
turn some kind of waste
into something beneficial
you had perhaps six to ten
systems to choose from… and
the likelihood that they'd
be permissible in
California, especially for
developing community-scale
systems for biomass to
combined heat and power,
was, well … slim, at best.
Now lack of functional
waste conversion systems
simply isn’t the problem.
Teru Talk has spent the
last year disproving the
tired old saw that "there
aren't any of these
working." The dearth of
operating waste conversion
installations in California
really isn't too
surprising; what's
surprising is that we can
still build ANYTHING here,
but that's a whole
different problem. On the
bright side, technical
options now exist for
conversion of just about
every sort of available
waste or residual into not
just heat and power, but
into fuels, foundation
chemicals, even into
pharmaceuticals. Politics
certainly play their role
in any anti-industrial
atmosphere; frozen
financing remains a
monstrous barrier. But as
the old prayer goes, let's
focus on changing the
things we
can.
The industry has struggled
so long and hard to get the
technical aspects right.
Now a great many waste
conversion efforts have
remained ONLY a "techy
thing", and
only lacking adequate
business management. This
is what we see shifting:
solid technical cores are
getting their requisite
business wrappers and
becoming an integral part
of the broader marketplace.
Instead of being odd,
although cool toys,
conversion technologies
(CT) are approaching that
magic time when they may be
"spec'd" into a project
just like any other
commercially-available
equipment or part, just
like selecting a pump, an
engine or an HVAC unit. To
do this, market study needs
to replace ego, and a
developer doesn't get to
claim they are still the
only game in town. This
competitive,
business-oriented approach
is a GOOD thing; remember,
it was only a decade or so
ago that there wasn't much
CT competition. To get to
this point of real market
entry, a "techy" company
has to ask itself a series
of tough questions: what IS
this thing we're
developing, why is it
different, who is the
competition, and how much
is worth on the open
market? And yes, it
needs to assess the costs
and risks against the
returns and benefits.
Companies need to attend to
the Business part of waste
conversion, and compete
their way into the open
market.
Hey Rube!
There are a
number of high-level
rulemakings and
standards-development efforts
underway that will change the
Waste Conversion socio-economic
position; we've reported on
three just this past week that
cover state, federal and
international programs. Oregon
has decided to define and
regulate Waste Conversion. The
U.S. Forest Service has issued
its final impact statement on
the massive new Forest Planning
Rule that will so significantly
change how National Forests
(and the resources they
contain) are managed. The
International Biochar
Initiative is moving forward
with its global conference
schedule, timed to coincide
with culmination of its
collaborative Biochar standards
development program. These big
plays could use your comment
and your support. Now, granted
that this may be more than you
can justify for the time and
expense necessary to become
directly engaged, but keep an
eye on Teru Talk; we're paying
attention.
The Week's News
Rennie Wins
Future Farmer Award for
Scotland's 1st AD
Plant
The Future
Farmer Award, an initiative
funded by the Elizabeth Murray
Trust, named Andrew Rennie of
Gask Farms in Turriff,
Aberdeenshire, Scotland, the
2011 Future Farmer.
01/29/2012
USFS Issues
Final Impact Statement for
New Forest Planning
Rule
The US Forest
Service (USFS) has released a
Final Programmatic
Environmental Impact Statement
(PEIS) for the proposed
National Forest System Land
Management Planning Rule.
Release of the PEIS signals the
intent to release the new
Planning Rule, which addresses
land management planning on the
193-million acre National
Forest System.
01/27/2012
Celtic
Renewables Converts
Scotland's Whisky Residuals
to
Bio-Butanol
Edinburgh
Napier University has announced
the commercialization of
Biofuel Research Center's
process for conversion of
whisky production residuals
into bio-butanol.
01/27/2012
Maersk
Completes Nautical Trials on
Solazyme's Algal Based
Biodiesel
California's
algal-derived biofuel and
bioproducts firm Solazyme
announced that the Virginia
based Maersk Line Ltd. has
completed a one month, 6,500
nautical mile fuel trial on
SoladieselRD as part of a US
Navy integrated testing and
certification program.
01/26/2012
ZeaChem
Receives $232.5 MM USDA
Conditional Loan
Guarantee
Colorado based
advanced biofuels company
ZeaChem has announced that the
US Department of Agriculture
(USDA) has approved a $232.5
million conditional loan
guarantee under the USDA's
Biorefinery Assistance Program.
01/26/2012
Xebec
Supplies Biogas Upgrading
Plant to South Korean AD
Plant
Canadian
biogas upgrading specialist
Xebec Adsorption, Inc. has
announced the award of a $2.2
million contract to provide a
biogas upgrading plant for
installation at a food
waste-to-energy anaerobic
digestion (AD) facility in
South Korea.
01/26/2012
USAF Issues
O&M Contract to
PyroGenesis for Plasma
Waste-to-Energy
System
The US Air
Force (USAF) has issued an
18 month contract to modular
plasma systems developer
PyroGenesis Canada, Inc for
operation and maintenance
(O&M), and data
collection for the Plasma
Resource Recovery System
(PRRS) at the Hurlburt Field
Air Force Base in Florida.
01/25/2012
Genomatica
Obtains Exclusive PROESA
Rights for Bio-BDO
Production
San Diego
based Genomatica has secured
exclusive global rights to use
the PROESA technology platform
for production of butanediol
(BDO) in a license agreement
with Beta Renewables.
01/24/2012
Avantium and
Solvay's Rhodia to Jointly
Develop
Bio-Polyamides
Dutch
catalysis specialists Avantium
announced that its partnership
with the Solvay group of
companies has now advanced to a
joint bio-polyamide development
agreement with Solvay's Rhodia
subsidiary.
01/24/2012
Ontario
Ministry Supports
Algae-based Emissions
Absorption
Pilot
Ontario,
Canada's Ministry of Economic
Development and Innovation has
announced its support for the
pilot project that captures
carbon dioxide laden emissions
from the St. Marys Cement plant
and converts it to oxygen and
biofuels. 01/24/2012
POET
Declines $105MM USDA Loan in
Favor of DSM Joint
Venture
Based in Sioux
Falls, South Dakota, advanced
biofuels company POET has
announced that it intends to
formally decline the $105
million USDA loan guarantee
secured last September, before
drawing upon any of the funds
available.
01/23/2012
Oregon DEQ
Starts Conversion Technology
Rulemaking
Oregon's
Department of Environmental
Quality (DEQ) has scheduled the
first advisory committee
meeting for January 27, 2012 to
discuss the state's new
Conversion Technology
Rulemaking.
01/23/2012
JBI Receives
Final Emissions Data on
Plastic2Oil Stack
Tests
Canada's
waste plastic to fuel
company JBI, Inc. has
received and released final
third-party stack test data
for their Plastic2Oil
conversion process (P2O) on
JBI's processors in New
York. 01/23/2012
MagneGas to
Supply Syngas Cutting Fuel
for Florida Tank Demolition
Project
Florida's
plasma-driven
waste-to-syngas company
MagneGas has announced a new
cutting fuel supply contract
with King Metal Recycling
and Processing Company of
Miami. 01/23/2012
The Week's Action
Items
Due
beginning 02/21/2012:
Applications to USDA for
Rural Energy Grants,
Loans
The US
Department of Agriculture
(USDA) is now accepting
applications for grants and
loans for energy efficiency
and renewable energy
projects.
01/26/2012
Due
03/09/2012: Grant
Applications for Manitoba
Biomass Energy
Program
The
Province of Manitoba, Canada
is now accepting
applications for its Biomass
Energy Support Program
(MBESP), an element of the
broader Manitoba Bioproducts
Strategy launched this
month. 01/25/2012
Due
03/31/2012: Abstracts for
4th International Biochar
Congress in
China
As
one of the key global
sponsoring organizations, the
International Biochar
Initiative (IBI) has released a
request for abstracts detailing
the process of consideration of
proposals for presentations
during the 4th International
Biochar Congress: "Biochar: The
Road to Richer Food and a Safer
Environment" to be held during
September 2012 in Beijing
China. 01/27/2012
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