Showing posts with label Australia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Australia. Show all posts

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Has AlgaeTec Cracked Algae's Biofuel Pricing Ability to Compete with a Barrel of Oil?

Amidst the relentless promotion of renewable biofuel alternatives to traditional fossil fuel hydrocarbons, the three leading contenders are jatpropha, camelina and algae. But among the many barriers holding back industrial production of biofuels is that no company up to now has yet figured out how to produce a gallon of biofuel at a price that can compete with gasoline.

Apparently until now, if press releases by Algae.Tec are anything to go by. The company, founded only three years ago, has offices in Atlanta, Georgia and Perth, Western Australia.

Algae.Tec founders, Earl McConchie and Roger Stroud, have been involved in the biofuel industry since 1999 and have developed a high yield enclosed algae growth and harvesting system, they labeled the McConchie-Stroud System, which uses low maintenance technologies and an efficient solar system to produce algae in one tenth of the land surface as compared to the current pond methods for producing algae. The McConchie-Stroud System photo-bioreactors produce oils which can be refined into biodiesel, sugar carbohydrates that can be used in the production of ethanol, proteins that can be used as feedstock for farm animals, and protein and carbohydrate biomass that can be combined to produce jet fuel.

Beating the PR drum for his company Stroud said, "Algae technology developed by the company has demonstrated exceptional performance, providing step change improvements in productivity, product yield, carbon dioxide sequestration, plant footprint requirements and substantial capital and cost savings as compared to agricultural crops and other competitive algae processes in the industry."

Most interestingly, for a world increasingly concerned with greenhouse gas emissions (GGEs), the McChoncie-Stroud System technology captures CO2 pollution from power stations and manufacturing facilities, which in turn are used to feed the algae growth system. Algae.Tec currently has 11 patent applications pending for its proprietary technology.

For a relatively new start-up company, Algae.Tec has already signed two Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs), one in China and the other in Australia and in January the company was listed on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX).

But moving beyond theory, Algae.Tec is now building a full scale prototype plant, having earlier this month signed a collaboration agreement to provide five bioreactor modules to Sri Lankan Holcim Lanka Limited cement and building materials company. The collaborative effort will result in Asia's first algae biofuels production facility designed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from cement manufacturing.

Holcim Lanka Limited decided to invest in Algae.Tec's technology as it had the dual benefit of reducing the company's carbon footprint by channeling waste carbon dioxide into the bioreactor's algae growth system, which in turn will generate biofuel at below market cost.

Note the phrase, "below market cost."Bringing the five photo-bioreactor modules will enable Holcim Lanka Limited to evaluate the benefits of capturing more waste carbon dioxide in a much larger facility, which in turn could lead to the company purchasing further modules for use at other sites.

Holcim Lanka Limited CEO Stefan Huber said, "the Algae.Tec facility is designed to reduce the cement manufacturing carbon dioxide emissions with an off-take into the algae growth system. We look forward to working with Algae.Tec on this exciting development that is aligned with our focus on sustainability and a commitment to the environment. Algae.Tec has a truly innovative technology backed by an expert international engineering team."

While Sri Lanka seems an exotic locale for such a facility, consider that Holcim Lanka Limited is part of Holcim Group, a global company with market presence in over 70 countries and is currently the second largest cement manufacturer in the world.

Accordingly, the potential for Algae.Tec contract is enormous, and what country has a surfeit of cement?

AlgaeTec is thinking far beyond Sri Lanka, targeted markets for its facilities in Australia, the U.S., China, Brazil and Southern Europe. If its McConchie-Stroud System technology can deliver on both recycling CO2 and provide biofuel at below market prices, then Algae.Tec will have a printing press for money that even the Federal Reserve might envy.

We shall see.

Posted courtesy of Dr. John C.K. Daly at Oilprice.com


Gold’s 4th Wave Consolidation Nears Completion and Breakout

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Crude Oil Is Set for Weekly Gain on Dollar, China’s Demand


Crude oil rose for a fifth day as the dollar fell toward a nine month low and industrial production in China, the world’s second biggest energy user, grew at a faster pace than forecast. Oil is poised for its first weekly gain in three after the dollar reached its lowest level since Dec. 18 against the euro for a second day as China’s factory output gained and new loans exceeded analyst expectations, reducing demand for the U.S. currency as a refuge. A weaker dollar increases demand for commodities as a hedge against inflation. “The expectation is that China is on a strong growth path,” said David Moore, a commodity strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia Ltd. in Sydney. “Also supportive of oil prices was the fact that the U.S. dollar has remained fairly soft.” Crude oil for October delivery rose as much as 41 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $72.35 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was at $72.26 a barrel at 11:43 a.m. Singapore time. Prices have gained 6.3 percent this week and climbed 62 percent this year.....Read the entire article

Conoco Says Australia Could Be Biggest LNG Exporter


Australia could become the world's biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas, or LNG, by 2020, the head of ConocoPhillips' (COP) Australian unit said Thursday. The comments came as Chevron Corp. (CVX) said it has signed three binding sales agreements to supply nearly three million tons a year of LNG from the proposed Gorgon project in Western Australia state to Japanese and Korean energy companies. ConocoPhillips Australia President Joseph Marushack said that a final investment decision is still expected to be made for its massive Gladstone LNG joint venture in Queensland state with Origin Energy Ltd. (ORG.AU) by the end of 2010, with first gas to be shipped in 2014.....Read the entire article

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Bloomberg Technical Analysis: Oil Uptrend Intact Until a Drop Below $66

Crude oil, which fell from a 10 month high of $75 a barrel in New York last week, remains in an uptrend and a sustained move lower isn’t likely unless prices settle below $66, National Australia Bank Ltd. said. Oil may climb to its recent highs in coming weeks even as the volatility in prices reflected uncertainty among traders, according to Gordon Manning, a Sydney based technical analyst. He correctly predicted Aug. 5 that the market wouldn’t settle below $66 a barrel on its way to a new high for 2009. “It’s not a downtrend in my books,” Manning said in a phone interview today. “It certainly hasn’t pushed on with the sort of aggression that I thought it might do, but there’s not enough damage to really get too worried”.....Read the complete article

Monday, August 24, 2009

Oil Drops From 10 Month High as Stocks Fall, Dollar Strengthens


Crude oil dropped from a 10 month high as concerns that China may tighten lending and more U.S. loans may default pushed equities lower and strengthened the dollar, reducing the investment appeal of commodities. Oil declined as investors sought so called safe haven assets such as the dollar over commodities. Oil also fell in tandem with equities on concern that the Chinese government would curb new loans and SunTrust Banks Inc. said that U.S. lenders face more credit losses and commercial real estate may falter through 2010. “Equity and oil markets have been very closely correlated in the last six months,” said Ben Westmore, an energy and minerals economist at National Australia Bank Ltd. in Melbourne.....Complete Story
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