CropEnergies is restarting the bioethanol plant in Wilton, UK. The goal is to intensively test the modifications to increase reliability and improve energy efficiency which were implemented during the standstill and to regulate production according to market conditions.
Evonik, one of the world leaders in specialty chemicals, signed a purchase agreement for acquisition of the probiotics business of the Spanish company Norel, a global supplier of animal feed ingredients.
The agreement sees Evonik acquiring Norel’s probiotics product portfolio as well as the company’s site in León (Spain). The business will be integrated into Evonik’s Animal Nutrition Business Line. The parties have agreed not to disclose details of the transaction.
Danish Dong Energy and Novozymes have agreed that Novozymes will deliver enzymes for the coming REnescience plant in Northwich in the North West of England. It will be the first full-scale bio plant in the world capable of handling household waste by means of enzymes.
In Duisburg yesterday Johanna Wanka, German Minister of Education and Research, announced funding of more than 60 million euros for the Carbon2Chem project initiated by thyssenkrupp. The aim of Carbon2Chem is to convert process gases from steel production – including the CO2 they contain – into base chemicals. The greenhouse gas CO2 would then no longer be discharged into the atmosphere. The energy required for the conversion process is to come from renewable sources.
Sixteen partners from the areas of basic and applied research and various sectors of industry are involved in the project. thyssenkrupp and the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Energy Conversion have carried out preparatory planning and scientific work. “Carbon2Chem can be an important contribution to climate protection and the transition to renewables,” said Heinrich Hiesinger, CEO of thyssenkrupp AG. Continue reading
British voters have voted in favor of Brexit: British exit from the European Union. That means that in the coming months, British and European leaders will begin negotiating the terms of Britain’s departure. Britain’s exit will affect British and EU economies, and also the bioeconomy. It will take years for the full consequences to become clear. From our point of view, as Europeans, it is an absurd. Obviously we do not put in discussion the result of the vote. We simply think that Great Britain is an integral part of the European Union. The development of the European bioeconomy needs Great Britain and viceversa.
Eni, the Italian oil giant, announces that the negotiations with the U.S. investment fund SK Capital over the sale of a majority share in Versalis S.p.A. have been terminated due to an impossibility to reach a resolution on certain issues, including the future governance of the company. Therefore, starting from the second quarter results, Eni will fully consolidate Versalis within the group’s accounts.
Two leading European bioeconomy players, the Bio-based Industries Consortium (BIC) and the Vanguard Initiative, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for better interregional cooperation on the bioeconomy.
The collaboration will support improved access to funding and awareness-raising activities, marrying BIC’s bioeconomy expertise with the Vanguard Initiative’s regional network to help steer Europe away from its fossil-based past and develop novel products for new markets, creating more jobs.
Novamont’s bio-based butanediol (BDO) plant in Bottrighe di Adria (Veneto, North-eastern Italy), established as a joint venture (Mater Biotech) with San Diego-based Genomatica and now entirely controlled by the company headquartered in Novara, will come on stream by the end of September. It is a big step forward for the Italian bioeconomy, which is confirmed in its leading role in Europe.
A U.S. warship took its first delivery of Italian-made biofuel on Thursday as part of the Navy’s program to use more alternative energy. The USS Mason was refueled alongside an Italian vessel, the Andrea Doria, in the seas off of Italy’s southern coast with a mix produced by Italy’s Eni that has 5.5 percent palm oil biofuel blended into marine fuel.
The Dutch government is planning to join the Mission Innovation coalition. The global initiative aims to accelerate public and private innovation in order to make clean energy affordable for consumers, as well as creating “green” jobs and commercial opportunities. Mission Innovation was announced by former Microsoft leader Bill Gates at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21) in Paris last year. At the launch, 20 countries – Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Denmark, EU, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Norway, Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, UAE, UK and US – committed to doubling their respective clean energy R&D by 2020.
IL BIOECONOMISTA 