Syntroleum Corporation (Nasdaq: SYNM) and Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE: TSN) announced the start of operations at a plant that is converting animal fats and greases into renewable fuels.
Dynamic Fuels LLC is a 50/50 joint venture of Syntroleum and Tyson. Production at the Dynamic Fuels plant began in early October and the volume being produced is 2,500 barrels per day and growing.
Unlike the ethanol and biodiesel industries, which use food ingredients such as corn and soybean oil to produce fuel, Dynamic Fuels uses non-food grade animal fats and greases.
To date, the Geismar, Louisiana, plant has manufactured renewable diesel with a cloud point as low as minus 26 degreesF and cetane as high as 88, more than twice that of the ASTM petroleum diesel specification. The facility’s renewable diesel fuel product meets all ASTM D975 specifications for diesel fuel.
Gary Roth, CEO of Syntroleum, said the carbon footprint of the fuel is 75% below that of petroleum diesel.
The facility is also capable of making specialty distillate products that can be used in a variety of applications such as dry cleaning, ink cartridges and drilling fluids. Roth said the company is actively pursuing those markets.
Dynamic Fuels has been making jet fuel for testing by the Air Force Research Laboratory.
Tyson and Syntroleum officials say they are hopeful Congress will restore the $1 per gallon renewable diesel tax credit that expired in December 2009. Fuel from the Geismar plant qualifies for the credit, which would help the economic feasibility of the operation and help recover development costs.
"More consistent and timely action by Congress on this and other biofuels tax credits is needed to provide stability and encourage the growth of the advanced biofuels industry, which is poised to help reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign oil," said Jeff Webster, group vice president of Tyson’s Renewable Products Division.
The new facility uses Syntroleum’s Bio-Synfining(TM) Technology to produce the renewable fuels from non-food grade animal fats produced or procured by Tyson Foods, such as beef tallow, pork lard, chicken fat and greases. The plant is designed to produce up to 75 million gallons of renewable fuels per year.
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