BDI retrofits US biodiesel plant
BDI Bioenergy International is revamping a plant that produces biodiesel, and the contract reveals where the US market is headed.
The Austrian firm did not wish to comment on the location, saying merely that the plant was in the northern US. The Americans have asked BDI to keep the matter confidential for the moment. We do know that the plant has been producing 30 million US gallons (roughly 114 million liters) of biodiesel each year from soy oil since 2004. The volume is relatively small compared to total German biodiesel output at around 2.3 million tons, and US production is even greater.
Last year, a new record was set when the sector crossed the one billion gallon threshold for biodiesel. But the deal could be the first in a long line as US producers realize that it is too expensive to make biodiesel from pure plant oil. They are therefore looking for alternatives.
"The plant is being revamped so that it can run on a wider range of precursor materials, including hard-to-process but inexpensive feedstock, such as vegetable oil, grease, and animal fat," BDI spokesperson Norbert Gaulhofer told Renewables International.
After a good production year in 2011, the US biodiesel sector is satisfied, but Gaulhofer says a lot of manufacturers also realize that production based on energy crops may not be sufficient at some point. "A lot of producers want to be able to fall back on a wider range of precursor materials and are looking into the final quality of their biodiesel," he says. While only a few companies are willing to invest in these areas in light of the difficult situation over the past few years, "if the sector further stabilizes and production figures remain sound in 2012, we see tremendous potential for a lot of producers to optimize their systems."
Since 2009, BDI has been doing business in the US and says that its commitment is now bearing fruit with this contract. In their RetroFit process, the Austrian firm promises to allow the production plant to work with a wide range of raw materials without reducing the quality of its biodiesel, which fulfills the EN14214 and ASTM D6751 standards. Furthermore, there are no losses in the processing of fatty acids and triglycerides. "Our program is excellent when it comes to retrofitting, renovating, and optimizing existing biodiesel plans," Gaulhofer says. (Dittmar Koop / Craig Morris)
