Category: Press

Addition of major traditional industry leaders closes year of sweeping progress for organization advancing algae as a source of sustainable, domestically-produced commodities

 

MINNEAPOLIS—(January 7, 2013)—New memberships in the Algae Biomass Organization, the trade association for the algae industry, reflected a wider range of industries in 2012, driven by the increasing impact of algae technology as an economical and environmental source of sustainable fuels, chemicals, food and other valued-added products.  New members included representatives from a range of industries, including United Airlines (aviation), The Scouler Company (agriculture), Duke Energy (energy), Church & Dwight (consumer packaged goods), SABIC (chemicals and fertilizer) and Mars Symbioscience (food & nutrition).

During the course of the year, ABO added more than 150 new members for 2012 and 2013, including 99 that signed up during the Algae Biomass Summit this past September in Denver, Colorado.

“These inspiring new membership numbers reflect the growing recognition that algae-based technologies and products have a significant role to play in the sustainable production of a range of commodity products, including fuel, feed and food applications, novel chemicals, human health and nutrition and many others,” said Mary Rosenthal, the organization’s executive director. “While algae-derived fuels have been much of the early focus of investors and industry, there’s no doubt that there is incredible opportunity in many other market segments. Our growing, and increasingly diverse, membership reflects this reality.”

ABO’s newest platinum level members in 2012 were: United Airlines and DLA Piper.  New Gold members in 2012 were:  Duke Energy and Mars Symbioscience. New Corporate memberships in 2012 included: Church & Dwight, Keller and Heckman LLP, Fluid Imaging Technologies, Inc., MicroBio Engineering, Inc., SABIC, POS Bio-Sciences, GreenField Ethanol, Inc., Georg Fischer LLC., Texas AgriLife Research, and Harvel Plastics. Corporate memberships joining around the Summit in Denver were Solutions 4CO2, The Scoular Company and Evodos. More than 130 others joined ABO in 2012 as individuals from academic, business and lab entities.

Algae industry highlights in 2012 included the first retail availability of algae-based biodiesel in California; the successful commissioning of Bioprocess Algae’s plant that produces algae for animal feed and nutritional markets; the commencement of operations at the world’s first commercial demonstration algae-to-energy facility; the recognition of algae as agriculture by Arizona and Ohio legislatures; research proving saltwater-grown algae can eliminate the need for fresh water; the deployment of algae wastewater treatment systems; and numerous technological breakthroughs in algal strain development, including the production of anti-cancer drugs from algae.

About the Algae Biomass Organization

The Algae Biomass Organization (ABO) is a 501 c(6) non-profit whose mission is to promote the development of viable commercial markets for renewable and sustainable commodities derived from algae. Its membership is comprised of people, companies and organizations across the value chain. More information about ABO, including its leadership, membership, costs, benefits and members and their affiliations, is available at the website:www.algaebiomass.org.

Tax parity puts algae on equal footing with cellulosic feedstocks, encouraging new sources of domestic, renewable biofuels

Washington, DC—January 2, 2013—As part of the bi-partisan “Fiscal Cliff” legislation passed by the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate on January 1, 2013, algae-derived fuels are, for the first time ever, a “qualified feedstock” under section 40 of the United States Code meaning that producers of algal fuel are eligible for a $1.01 per gallon tax credit.

“Achieving tax parity with other biofuels has been a key legislative priority for ABO since our founding in 2008,” said Mary Rosenthal, executive director of the Algae Biomass Organization, the trade association for the U.S. algae industry. “This new designation is the culmination of years of hard work, outreach and advocacy of ABO and our members as well as others in the algae industry.  It is also a reflection of the increased understanding of, and enthusiasm for, algae-based fuels among members of Congress and the Obama administration.”

Under the legislation passed yesterday producers of fuels derived from algae, cyanobacteria or lemna (another free-floating aquatic plant with biofuel potential) will be allowed to benefit from the $1.01 per gallon tax credit that was previously only available to cellulosic feedstocks. The bill also includes language that extends a special depreciation allowance on biofuel plant property to producers using algae.

“This is a huge win for our members and America’s energy security,” Rosenthal continued. “By leveling the playing field, this legislation will help foster the continued investment in algae technology companies as well as accelerate the commercial production and the sale of algae-based fuels.”

The new classification comes at a critical time for the industry, as several algae-based fuel companies move to commercial production and research continues to create breakthrough opportunities for new technology and products. In the past year algae-based fuels have been successfully demonstrated in military aircraft and ships, and in late 2012 were introduced into commercial markets for automotive fuel for the first time.

Algae is a unique biofuel feedstock that can simultaneously be refined into vehicle fuels, recycle CO2, provide nutrition for animals and people and create jobs for millions of Americans without harmful impacts on freshwater supplies or valuable agricultural land. More information can be found at www.allaboutalgae.com.

About the Algae Biomass Organization

The Algae Biomass Organization (ABO) is a 501 c(6) non-profit whose mission is to promote the development of viable commercial markets for renewable and sustainable commodities derived from algae. Its membership is comprised of people, companies and organizations across the value chain. More information about ABO, including its leadership, membership, costs, benefits and members and their affiliations, is available at the website:www.algaebiomass.org.

Department of Defense investments will improve military’s operational security and aid development of competitive, domestic sources of renewable fuels

MINNEAPOLIS—(December 20, 2012)—The Algae Biomass Organization (ABO), the trade association for the algae industry, applauded the strong support for military biofuels in the  final version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) scheduled for House and Senate votes this week.

The NDAA, when passed by both houses and signed by the President, would allow the Department of Defense (DOD) to continue purchasing advanced biofuels as part of its efforts to reduce its reliance on fossil fuels. It would also permit the DOD to invest in biofuel development facilities with matching funds from the Departments of Agriculture and Energy.

Military leaders have consistently supported efforts to develop advanced biofuels as a means to reduce troops’ reliance on fossil fuel supplies.  The protection of fuel supply lines too often threatens the military’s operational security, and even small fluctuations in the price of oil can drain fuel budgets—requiring funds to be diverted from personnel or equipment budgets.

“This is a big win for biofuel investments and a reaffirmation of the role that sustainable, domestic biofuels can play in our national security,” said Mary Rosenthal, executive director of the Algae Biomass Organization. “We are grateful for the incredible leadership of Senators Mark Udall (D-CO) and Kay Hagan (D-NC) for their amendments to the NDAA that will permit the kind of public-private partnerships we need to make competitive, domestic sources of biofuels a reality. We would also like to thank Representative Adam Smith (D-WA) and the members of the conference committee for their hard work in pushing this part of the legislation forward.”

About the Algae Biomass Organization

The Algae Biomass Organization (ABO) is a 501 c(6) non-profit whose mission is to promote the development of viable commercial markets for renewable and sustainable commodities derived from algae. Its membership is comprised of people, companies and organizations across the value chain. More information about ABO, including its leadership, membership, costs, benefits and members and their affiliations, is available at the website:www.algaebiomass.org.

Findings remove key sustainability concern for wide-scale algae production and suggest potential use of up to 10 million acres of land otherwise unsuitable for agriculture

SAN DIEGO, Calif. (November 26, 2012) The Algae Biomass Organization, the trade association for the U.S. algae industry today hailed the findings of a University of California at San Diego study that concludes, for the first time, that marine (saltwater) algae can be just as capable as freshwater algae in producing biofuels. The research is documented in a peer-reviewed paper published online in the current issue of the scientific journal Algal Research.

“What this means is that you can use ocean water to grow the algae that will be used to produce biofuels. And once you can use ocean water, you are no longer limited by the constraints associated with fresh water. Ocean water is simply not a limited resource on this planet,” said Stephen Mayfield, Ph.D., a professor of biology at UC San Diego, who headed the research project.

The availability of significant saltwater environments for algae production has been documented in recent years. According to a Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s (PNNL) report, algal fuels grown in saline water from existing aquifers and recycling nutrients would be able to provide up to twice the goal for advanced biofuels set under the Energy Independence and Security Act (roughly 40 billion gallons or 20 percent of annual transportation fuel demand).

Yet until today’s report, no public research had demonstrated the capability of algae to thrive in a saltwater environment.

“The results of Dr. Mayfield’s research should remove concerns about the exclusive use of fresh water to scale commercial production of algae for fuel and other co-products,” said Mary Rosenthal, ABO’s executive director. “Although leading algae production companies are already leveraging saline aquifers and ocean water, this publicly-available paper will update the current body of research on the topic of sustainability of algae production.

Dr. Mayfield estimates that there are about 10 million acres of land in the United States alone that are no longer suitable for traditional agriculture given high salt content in the soil, but that could support algae production facilities.

The paper’s authors also believe their research will determine how algae grown in these environments could also be used for animal feed, noting: “We hope to eventually determine whether whole algae, post-oil extraction, may be used as a feed additive to improve animal feeds. Animal feed is a relatively high volume market that may be able to benefit from algae-produced proteins as a feed additive.”

The UC San Diego biologists collaborated on the research with scientists from Sapphire Energy, Inc., an algae company that is operating a saltwater algae farm in Columbus, New Mexico that is expected to be producing 100 barrels per day of Green Crude oil in 2013.

About the Algae Biomass Organization

The Algae Biomass Organization (ABO) is a 501 c(6) non-profit whose mission is to promote the development of viable commercial markets for renewable and sustainable commodities derived from algae. Its membership is comprised of people, companies and organizations across the value chain. More information about ABO, including its leadership, membership, costs, benefits and members and their affiliations, is available at the website: www.algaebiomass.org.

MINNEAPOLIS–October 24, 2012–The Algae Biomass Organization today applauded the findings of a new National Research Council (NRC) report on the sustainability of algal fuels that definitively concluded that sustainability concerns are not a barrier to future growth.

According to the NRC report released today, “The committee does not consider any one of these sustainability concerns a definitive barrier to sustainable development of algal biofuels because mitigation strategies for each of those concerns have been proposed and are being developed.”

As the NRC notably pointed out in its report, there are five areas of “major” sustainability concern.  The good news is that these are already being addressed by algal fuel producers and researchers.

1. Water: Use of saline and non-potable or recycled water is essential to commercial algae production. According to a Pacific Northwest National Laboratories’ (PNNL) report, algal fuels grown in saline water from existing aquifers and recycling nutrients would be able to provide up to twice the goal for advanced biofuels set under the Energy Independence and Security Act goal (roughly 40 billion gallons or 20 percent of annual transportation fuel demand).
2. Nutrients: Nutrient recycle and efficient use of resources are essential to achieving the techno-economics of energy production and producing a low carbon fuel.  ABO members are piloting this technology today and the DOE and several universities have ongoing research in this area.  As PNNL points out, use of nutrients is dramatically decreased when recycling is used. Nitrogen fertilizer consumption is reduced 98% and phosphorus fertilizer is reduced by more than 40%.
3. Land Use: Again we agree land use is an important consideration.  PNNL recently reported there are more than 89,000 suitable sites in the United States for open pond cultivation.
4. Energy ROI: Industry leaders are already achieving the NRC report’s proposed benchmark for Energy Return on Investment (EROI) of 3x (3 units of energy produced per unit of energy input) in current algae biofuels production processes by recycling nutrients, producing biomethane from residual organics, and engineering designs that minimize energy use.
5. GHG emissions lifecycle: By qualifying algae-based diesel as an Advanced Biofuel under the Renewable Fuel Standard, the US Environmental Protection Agency’s life cycle analysis found that algae-based diesel reduces greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50 percent, thus qualifying it as an Advanced Biofuel under the Renewable Fuel Standard.

With more than 150 companies and more than 60 labs and research facilities continuing to innovate the industry, and with pre-commercial facilities coming online in 2013, there’s no doubt that algal fuels will only become more economically and environmentally sustainable, and researchers will have more current and accurate data sets from which to make projections.

ABO does strongly agree with the NRC’s conclusion that additional research, development and innovation will continue to improve the sustainability of products derived from algae.

We hope that policymakers and others involved in the future of the domestic fuel industry will recognize the NRC’s conclusion that sustainability concerns are not a definitive barrier to future growth.

About the Algae Biomass Organization

The Algae Biomass Organization (ABO) is a 501 c(6) non-profit whose mission is to promote the development of viable commercial markets for renewable and sustainable commodities derived from algae. Its membership is comprised of people, companies and organizations across the value chain. More information about ABO, including its leadership, membership, costs, benefits and members and their affiliations, is available at the website:www.algaebiomass.org.

Contacts:

John Williams, Scoville Public Relations for ABO

206-625-0075 x1, jwilliams@scovillepr.com