Shell’s new $12 Billion Investment in Sugarcane Ethanol with Cosan

Shell and Cosan, one of the world’s largest sugarcane ethanol companies based in Brazil, signed binding agreements to form a $12 billion joint venture for the production and commercialization of ethanol and power from sugarcane. The JV would be the third largest ethanol producer in the world with 4,500 retail stations and annual production 440 million gallons. Sugarcane is the currently the most efficient feedstock for larger scale ethanol production. While corn ethanol delivers little more energy output than the total energy necessary to grow, process, and transport it; sugarcane ethanol delivers eight times the energy output as lifecycle energy input.

Ethanol – the Good, the Bad, the Ugly, the Beautiful

We must move past fuel from food and haste to fuels from wood and waste. Although the economics do not yet favor major production, pilot plants are taking wood and paper waste and converting it to fuel. Other cellulosic material is even more promising. Some grasses, energy crops, and hybrid poplar trees promise zero-emission fuel sources. These plants absorb CO2 and sequester it in the soil with their deep root systems.

US Ethanol Industry Eyes Valero’s Bid for VeraSun

Just over a year ago, ethanol manufacturer VeraSun Energy Corp. was one of biofuels’ fastest-rising stars. The company is the largest publicly traded ethanol producer in the United States. Valero’s Day said. “As an oil company, we buy up a good amount of ethanol,” he said. “We believe ethanol is here to stay as part of our fuel mix — we don’t believe the renewable fuel standard will go anywhere but up — and we thought it was a good time to make a bid for those plants.”

Oil vs. Biofuels: Cellulosic Ethanol, Biodiesel, and Biogasoline.

Oil prices neared $100 per barrel as hundreds of leading investors converged at the Pacific Growth Equities Clean Technology Conference. A number of exciting companies presented next generation biofuels that promise to reduce the nation’s dependency on foreign oil. Look for a freedom harvest including cellulosic ethanol, biodiesel, and biogasoline.

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7 Tips to Get Better Gas Mileage in a Truck

This article offers seven strategies that will enable you to improve your trucking fuel economy without negatively impacting performance.

UPS Begins Cargo eBike Test in Seattle

Recently, UPS announced that it would be launching a new delivery program in Seattle using electrified delivery tricycles. These UPS cargo eBikes (which look a bit like UPS tuk-tuks) will be used for deliveries in and around the Pike Place Market and downtown areas in Seattle.