Following a delay of nearly two years, cellulosic biofuel company Range Fuels announced that it has finally begun production at its facility in rural Georgia.
The company is producing cellulosic methanol from the initial phase of its first commercial plant near Soperton, Georgia, using non-food biomass.
The plant was originally scheduled to open in 2008. The economic downturn contributed to delays, pushing the schedule back to 2009 and ultimately 2010. However, deep-pocketed investors, such as Khosla Ventures, and a Department of Agriculture loan guarantee helped to keep the company viable.
The new plant employs Range Fuels’ two-step thermo-chemical process, which uses heat, pressure, and steam to convert non-food biomass, such as woody biomass and grasses into a synthesis gas composed of hydrogen and carbon monoxide. The syngas is then passed over a proprietary catalyst to produce mixed alcohols that are separated and processed to yield a variety of low-carbon biofuels, including cellulosic ethanol and methanol.
The cellulosic methanol produced from Phase 1 will be used to produce biodiesel. It may also be used to displace diesel in heating applications, used as a fuel additive in gasoline-powered motor vehicles, or used to power fuel cells.
Range Fuels plans to begin production of cellulosic ethanol from the plant in 3Q10.
"We are ecstatic to be producing cellulosic methanol from our Soperton Plant, and are on track to begin production of cellulosic ethanol in the third quarter of this year," said David Aldous, Range Fuels’ President and CEO. "This milestone is a giant step in overcoming the technological and financing challenges facing the commercialization of cellulosic biofuels."
The Soperton Plant will initially use woody biomass from nearby timber operations, but plans to experiment with other types of renewable biomass as feedstock for the conversion process, including herbaceous feedstocks like miscanthus and switchgrass. Range Fuels plans to expand the capacity of the plant to 60 million gallons of cellulosic biofuels annually with construction to begin next summer.
The Soperton Plant is permitted to produce 100 million gallons of ethanol and methanol each year.
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