ST. JOSEPH, Missouri - Farmers plan to sow thousands of acres of switchgrass, high-biomass sorghum and other energy crops over the next three years near St. Joseph, Missouri to support a next-generation biorefinery that will be developed here.

The demonstration-scale biorefinery being engineered by ICM, Inc., based in Colwich Kansas, will produce cellulosic ethanol from biomass crops rather than corn.

On January 29, Department of Energy officials announced up to $30 million in supplemental funding for the planned facility. The project includes participation from academic institutions, government and other technology providers.

The Energy Department will invest up to $114 million over four years in the biorefinery projects with the goal of making cellulosic ethanol cost-competitive in five years. Other funding recipients include Lignol Innovations, Inc.; Pacific Ethanol, Inc.; and Stora Enso, North America.

Announcing the funding, Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman said, "Advanced biofuels offer tremendous promise for helping our nation to bring about a new, cleaner, more secure and affordable energy future."

To produce the cellulosic ethanol, ICM Inc. will utilize switchgrass, corn fiber, corn stover, and sorghum, integrating biochemical processing and demonstrating energy recycling within the biorefinery.

Energy crop company Ceres, Inc. will supply seed of specially developed energy crop cultivars to the Missouri farmers, who will grow the plants and harvest the biomass.

Ceres will also provide agronomic recommendations to the overall venture, which will compare numerous raw materials, including Ceres' dedicated energy crops, for their conversion efficiency and fuel yields, as well as their economic viability.

"We are pleased that ICM chose Ceres as a seed provider for the dedicated energy crops they need," said Ceres chief executive Richard Hamilton.

"This project will be an important proving ground for new technologies, both in the field and at the biorefinery," said Hamilton, who notes that higher crop yields and optimized biomass composition can have a dramatic impact on reducing cellulosic biofuel production costs.

"Ceres will help determine the best mix of crops, the right traits and cultivars, as well as the agronomic practices that maximize biomass yields and conversion efficiency of the biomass to biofuel," he said.

Hamilton expects energy crop acreage across the U.S. to increase rapidly as best practices are duplicated in other areas. "Once we get crops in the field and biomass moving through a refinery, the industry will start bringing down costs, and ramping up production," he said, noting that the Energy Independence and Security Act enacted in December 2007 calls for a minimum of 16 billion gallons per year from biomass.

Hamilton said, "Getting there will require the application of new technologies, such as biotechnology, both in the field and at the biorefinery."

Development of cellulosic ethanol is expected to result in higher net energy benefits, as well as reduced greenhouse gas emissions. Currently, switchgrass-to-ethanol produces about five times more energy than needed to grow, harvest and process it, and results in 90 percent less greenhouse gas emissions than petroleum.

Copyright Environment News Service (ENS) 2008. All rights reserved. 

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