WASHINGTON, DC —The U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced the selection of 19 projects that will receive $23 million for biomass research, development and demonstration projects.
The joint grant program is part of the Bush Administration’s effort to increase America’s energy independence through the development of additional renewable energy resources from the agricultural and agroforestry sectors. Biomass is defined as organic matter that is available on a renewable or recurring basis.
“The conversion of biomass into biobased products, fuels and energy offers significant benefits to the nation through healthier rural economies, improved environmental quality and improved energy independence,” said Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman. “These grants will help develop additional renewable energy resources and expand markets for agricultural products.”
“This Administration is committed to the development of a next-generation of biorefineries that serve the nation by producing cost-competitive biobased industrial products and transportation fuels such as ethanol and biodiesel,” said Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham. “The development of the biomass industry and biobased products will have a tremendous economic impact on rural America.”
The 2002 Farm Bill allocated $75 million to USDA over six years to fund research, development and demonstration projects under the Biomass Research and Development Act of 2000. The legislation established a governing board co-chaired by USDA and DOE.
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service and DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy coordinated efforts to issue a joint solicitation that is awarding nearly $16 million in USDA funding and more than $7 million from DOE appropriations. About 400 proposals were received requesting more than $370 million. All eligible proposals were competitively evaluated in a three-step process that included a joint USDA-DOE technical merit review, cost analysis and review under the respective independent priorities of the departments as published in the solicitation.
Following is a list of the 19 selected projects and the dollar amount funded.
DOE Projects
Trustees of Dartmouth (Hanover, N.H.)—Integration of Leading Biomass Pretreatment Technologies with Enzymatic Digestion and Hydrolyzate Fermentation - $1,882,866
University of Florida (Gainesville, Fla.)—Engineering Thermotolerant Biocatalysts for Biomass Conversion to Products - $1,437,620
PureVision Technology, Inc. (Ft. Lupton, Colo.)—Demonstration of the PureVision Biorefinery - $2,000,000
Cargill, Inc. (Minneapolis, Minn.)—Platform Chemicals from an Oilseed Biorefinery - $1,877,176
USDA Projects
Metabolix, Inc. (Cambridge, Mass.)—Advanced Biorefinery Feedstocks - $2,000,000
Utah State University (Logan, Utah)—Research and Demonstration of Anaerobic System on a Large Dairy Farm - $761,385
Earth Resources, Inc. (Carnesville, Ga.)—Animal Waste Management-Chicken Litter to Energy - $1,136,936
West Central Cooperative (Ralston, Iowa)—New Technologies for Production of Methyl Esters - $1,199,646
Clemson University (Clemson, S.C.)—Heterogeneous Catalyst Development for Biodiesel Synthesis - $894,203
New Energy Solutions, Inc. (Pittsfield, Mass.)—Design and Demonstration of a Commercial Prototype for Onsite Production of High Purity Hydrogen from Farm Animal Wastes - $204,603
Archer Daniels Midland Company (Quincy, Ill./ Decatur, Ind.)—Biomass Research and Development for the Production of Fuels, Chemicals, and Improved Cattle Feed - $1,400,000
GrainValue, LLC (St. Paul, Minn.)—GrainValue Process: Pre-Commercialization Trials - $1,763,160
Pennsylvania State University (University Park, Penn.)—Coupled Processes for Bioenergy Production: Biological Hydrogen Linked with Microbial Fuel Cells - $610,913
Iowa State University (Ames, Iowa)—Biopolymers and Other Value-Added Products from Distillers’ Dried Grains - $1,000,000
Local Energy (Tesuque, N.M.)—Biomass-Fired District Energy: A Source of Economic Development and Energy Security - $1,286,768
Vermont’s Alternative Energy Corporation (Willston, Vt.)—Steps Towards a Biorefinery Industry in Vermont - $746,912
Texas Agricultural Experiment Station (College Station, Texas)—Biomass for Tomorrow’s Energy and Greenhouse Gas Management Needs: An Economic, Engineering and Environmental Appraisal of Opportunities and Policies - $716,388
Sebesta, Blomberg & Associates, Inc. (Roseville, Minn.)—Biomass Cogeneration Demonstration Plant at Central Minnesota Ethanol Cooperative - $2,000,000
T.R. Miles Technical Consultants, Inc. (Portland, Ore.)—Feasibility of an Integrated System for Improving the Economic and Environmental Performance of Poultry and Ethanol Production in North Alabama - $254,274
For more information on these grant award winners please see http://www.bioproducts-bioenergy.gov/
Media Contact(s):
Chris Kielich, DOE, 202/586-5806
Mary Cressel, USDA, 202/690-0547
