After several delays, Rothsay is expanding biodiesel production at its plant in Ville Sainte Catherine, QB, Canada, in the outskirts south of Montreal, by dedicating nearly $14.5 million (Canadian) in total, $7 million of incremental investment. The 100 percent private venture will boost the rendering company’s present biodiesel production capacity of four million liters (one million gallons) to 35 million liters (9.2 million gallons) annually, with a possible further expansion to 70 million liters (18.4 million gallons). Groundbreaking is scheduled for September with plans for the facility to be operational by April 2005.
“We are convinced that biodiesel is a winning solution, both economically and environmentally,” declared Claude Bourgault, Quebec general manager for Rothsay. “Biodiesel is a high-performance, easy-to-use fuel that helps tangibly and significantly reduce greenhouse gas and other polluting emissions. Biodiesel has proven its worth and provides Quebec with a unique opportunity to develop a very high-potential green industry.”
Rothsay, a fully owned subsidiary of Maple Leaf Foods Group, Inc., began producing the alternative fuel that meets the standards of American Society of Testing and Materials (ASTM) D6751 in September 2001 using restaurant grease and animal fats at a pilot plant. The technology, designed by Rothsay engineers, can accommodate any feedstock. Accord-ing to the company, Quebec has an abundant supply of fats to accom-modate the increase in production.
“Without a doubt, biodiesel is among the future solutions for sustainable transportation,” Bourgault added. “It also provides an industry [rendering] hard-hit in recent years with a unique opportunity for intel-ligent recycling by capitalizing on wastes that are plentiful in Quebec.”
Another Canadian biodiesel producer is also ramping up production. Biox Corporation plans to scale up its one million liter (264,000 gallons) per year plant in Hamilton, ON, to a 60 million liter (15.8 million gallons) facility. The company’s proprietary process converts oil and greases, including animal fats and recycled cooking oil, into biodiesel that meets ASTM D6751 and the European standard, EN14214. To assist in the expansion, Biox will use a recently awarded $5 million grant from Sustainable Development Technology Canada, a not-for-profit corporation created by the government of Canada.
To help these and other biodiesel interests further promote the fuel in Canada, canola and soybean growers, along with processors and animal fat renderers, have formed the Biodiesel Association of Canada.
The mission of the association will be to work with government agencies on Canadian legislation affecting the biodiesel industry, to promote the industry, and provide resource information. Brad Hammer, vice president of the Saskatchewan Canola Growers Association, was elected the association’s chairman.
The cost of biodiesel went down in the Canadian province of British Columbia on July 1, 2004, where ethanol and biodiesel fuels are now exempt from the region’s 3.5-cent motor fuel tax. A number of alternative fuels were already exempt from the provincial motor fuel tax, including E-85 (85 percent ethanol, 15 percent gasoline), M-85 (85 percent methanol, 15 percent gasoline), and natural gas. According to Finance Minister Gary Collins, “This expanded exemption will help offset the higher costs of these ethanol and biodiesel blends and make them more competitive with conventional fuels. It will promote the use of these fuels and stimulate the development of production facilities in British Columbia as more people choose alternative fuels.”
More Tax Incentives
U.S. biodiesel producers in Maine can now receive a five-cent per gallon tax credit. According to a news release from the Maine House Democrats, the southern and central areas of the state are good sources of recycled restaurant cooking oil, which is one of several feedstocks used to produce biodiesel. It is estimated that Maine restaurants generate three million gallons of waste vegetable oil annually.
In the United Kingdom, tax incentives for biodiesel will continue through at least 2007, according to an announcement of the United Kingdom 2005 budget. The biodiesel tax incentive remains unchanged at 20 pence (36 cents) per liter.
Europe Sees Biodiesel as Solution for Animal By-products
A specialist committee of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has declared that manufac-turing biodiesel is a safe way of disposing of animal by-products that are deemed at risk of transmitting transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs). These products are referred to as Category 1 materials under the European Commission Regulation 1774/2002, the animal by-products regulation.
EFSA’s panel on biological hazards has concluded that because the material at the start of the production process is rendered and treated at 133 degrees Celsius for 20 minutes, “it may be concluded that the resulting biodiesel (and by-products) do not carry a TSE risk.” The panel warned that bioassay tests on live organisms – conclusively proving its safety as regards to TSE transmission – are impossible because of the general toxicity of biodiesel.
Grants Awarded Across the Globe
The city of East Lansing, MI, will receive a biodiesel infrastructure grant from the Michigan State Energy Office, which will enable the city to enhance its planned fueling facility with a pump and tank for biodiesel refueling. The $24,500 grant will be applied to one of two 25,000 underground storage tanks for East Lansing’s new fueling facility. Terms of the grant specify that three years of biodiesel fueling from that tank to begin in April 2005. City of East Lansing Environmental Specialist Dave Smith estimates the city will consume approximately 125,000 gallons of the alternative fuel during the grant period.
In Australia, three biodiesel producers received a portion of $24.6 million (Australian) in federal capital grants under the first round of the government’s Biofuels Capital Grants Program. Australian Renewable Fuels, a subsidiary of Amadeus Energy, Ltd., was awarded a $7.15 million grant to help construct its first biodiesel plant in Port Adelaide in South Australia.
Other grant recipients include Biodiesel Industries Australia’s Rutherford plant in New South Wales ($1.28 million), and Biodiesel Producers, Ltd.’s, Barnawatha plant in Victoria ($9.6 million).
Case Approves Biodiesel Use
Case IH, a manufacturer of agricultural and construction equipment, has approved the use of blends of up to five percent biodiesel that meet the ASTM 6751 standard. According to the company, use of biodiesel fuel meeting these standards “will in no way affect any pre-existing or new Case IH product warranty.” Case IH offers tips for successful use of biodiesel on its Web site at www.caseih.com/news/detail.asp?Reg=NA&RL=ENNA&id= 2013, and actively participates in industry organizations and initiatives in support of biofuels.
Biodiesel Bulletin - August 2004 Render