DOE Allots $786.5M from Recovery Act for Biofuels Research, Commercialization
May 22, 2009 // Published as a news service by IHS
A directive to help preserve biofuel industry jobs and to establish the Biofuels Interagency Working Group, which will develop a program for growing the biofuels market, was approved by the DOE.
The DOE Biomass Program is designed to leverage DOE's national laboratories, universities and the private sector to help improve biofuels reliability and overcome technical challenges, with the goal of creating third-generation biofuels like green gasoline, diesel and jet fuels, according to the DOE.
The $786.5 million in Recovery Act funding is a mix of new funding opportunities and additional funding for existing projects. It will be allocated across four main areas.
1. $480 million solicitation for integrated pilot- and demonstration-scale biorefineries
Projects selected under this funding opportunity announcement will work to validate integrated biorefinery technologies that are billed as producing advanced biofuels, bioproducts and heat and power in an integrated system, thus enabling private financing of commercial-scale replications.
The DOE anticipates making 10 to 20 awards for refineries at various scales and designs, all expected to be operational in the next three years. The DOE funding ceiling is $25 million for pilot-scale projects and $50 million for demonstration scale projects.
These integrated biorefineries are touted as reducing dependence on petroleum-based transportation fuels and chemicals, according to the DOE. They will also facilitate the development of an "advanced biofuels" industry to meet the federal Renewable Fuel Standards.
2. $176.5 million for commercial-scale biorefinery projects
Approximately $176.5 million will be used to increase the federal funding ceiling on two or more demonstration- or commercial-scale biorefinery projects that were selected and awarded within the last two years.
The goal of these efforts is to reduce the risk of the development and deployment of these operations, according to the DOE. These funds are expected to expedite the construction phase of these projects and accelerate the timeline for start-up and commissioning.
3. $110 million for research in key program areas
The Biomass Program plans to use $110 million to support research in program areas distributed in the following manner:
- Expand the resources available for sustainability research through the Office of Science Bioenergy Research Centers and establish a user-facility/small-scale integrated pilot plant ($25 million).
- Create a research consortium to develop technologies and facilitate subsequent demonstration of infrastructure-compatible biofuels ($35 million).
- Create an algal biofuels consortium to accelerate demonstration of algal biofuels ($50 million).
4. $20 million for ethanol research
The Biomass Program plans to use $20 million of the Recovery Act funding to achieve the following:
- Optimize flex-fuel vehicles operating on high octane E85 fuel (85% ethanol, 15% gasoline blend).
- Evaluate the impact of higher ethanol blends in conventional vehicles.
- Upgrade existing refueling infrastructure to be compatible with fuels up to E85.
- Support the development of next-generation biofuels.
- Increase the use of flexible-fuel vehicles.
- Assist in retail marketing efforts.
The USDA will also make financing from the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008 available within the next 30 days to fund:
- Loan guarantees for the development, construction and retrofitting of commercial scale biorefineries and grants to help pay for the development and construction costs of demonstration-scale biorefineries.
- Funding to encourage biorefineries to replace the use of fossil fuels in plant operations by installing new biomass energy systems or producing new energy from renewable biomass.
- Funding to biofuels producers to encourage production of next-generation biofuels from biomass and other non-corn feedstocks.
- Expansion of Renewable Energy Systems and Energy Efficiency Improvements Program, which will be renamed the Rural Energy for America Program, to include hydroelectric source technologies, energy audits and higher loan guarantee limits.
- Guidance and support for collection, harvest, storage and transportation assistance for eligible materials for use in biomass conversion facilities.