Following are nominees for the next European Commission. Job assignments were announced yesterday by the incoming president, Jean-Claude Juncker of Luxembourg. Juncker sailed through his European Parliament confirmation in July; hearings await the rest in late September, followed by a vote on the whole slate.
Il Bioeconomista’s list focuses on commissioners more involved in the Bioeconomy.
Everything is ready in Reims, France, to host the seventh edition of Efib. EuropaBio, the European Association for Bioindustries, and Smithers Rapra in association with IAR-Pole return in 2014 from 30 September to 2 October to deliver the European Forum for Industrial Biotechnology and the Biobased Economy. EFIB is the premier market place for the European Biobased economy. Over 800 professionals, working within the dynamic and sustainable biobased industries sector, will be in attendance.
POET-DSM Advanced Biofuels, a joint venture of Royal DSM and POET, yesterday proved its revolutionary technology that converts agricultural residue into renewable fuel at the Grand Opening of its first commercial cellulosic ethanol plant in Emmetsburg, Iowa.
A project aimed at helping Kentucky transition to a “new energy economy” has been awarded $20 million from the National Science Foundation (NSF). Kentucky was one of six jurisdictions chosen to receive a five-year Research Infrastructure Improvement Track 1 award from the NSF’s Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). An additional $4 million in matching funds comes from Kentucky EPSCoR, which receives funding from the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education, bringing total funding for the project to $24 million.
Clariant, a world leader in specialty chemicals, announced Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) Mass Balance supply chain certification for its plant in Gendorf, Germany, in order to meet the increasing demand for sustainable certified palm-based ingredients from customers in the personal care and home care sectors.
U.S. based Virent announced it has successfully received fuel registration from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for its BioForm Gasoline in blends of up to 45%. As a registered fuel, Virent’s biogasoline can now be used in on-highway motor vehicles.
Australian headquartered Cardia Bioplastics announced that it is setting up its own film and bag manufacturing plant in São Paulo, Brazil. New purpose-built facilities have been leased and production commencement is scheduled for September 2014. The production machinery costing A$750,000 is funded using vendor finance over a twelve months period. The new factory is expected to deliver a production capacity of 500 million retail carry bags per year. This capacity is over four times greater than that of the current Cardia Bioplastics manufacturing plant in Nanjing, China.
Cathay Pacific Airways announced a strategic investment in Fulcrum BioEnergy, and negotiated a long-term supply agreement with Fulcrum for an initial 375 million US gallons of sustainable aviation fuel over 10 years (representing on an annual basis approximately 2% of the airline’s current fuel consumption) that meets all the airline’s technical requirements and specifications.
Genomatica, US industrial biotech company, announced that major nylon intermediates – including hexamethylenediamine, caprolactam and adipic acid (HMD, CPL and ADA) – are the focus of its third publicly-disclosed development program.
Genomatica is developing complete process technologies for the biobased production of these intermediates, which it will then license to major firms in the nylon value chain. These three chemicals, with a total market of over $18 billion per year, are used primarily in the production of nylon 6 and nylon 6,6, also referred to as the polyamides PA 6 and PA 6,6.
IL BIOECONOMISTA 