Advanced Biofuel Developers Bail on Costly Technology, Turn to Shale Gas Boom

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--2013 was supposed the year in which U.S. advanced biofuels would have a significant impact on the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS), but it ain't happening. The original plan was for 14 million gallons of cellulosic ethanol in full-year 2013, but the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cut that number back to 6 million gallons.

Some plants are operating and producing advanced biofuels, like KiOR Incorporated's (NASDAQ:KIOR) (Pasadena, Texas) facility in Columbus, Mississippi, which already is planning its "Columbus II" expansion. Ineos is producing at its Indian River plant near Vero Beach, Florida.

POET and Abengoa are building new plants, but they will not begin operating until 2014 and won't be able to help reach their 2013 targets. Numerous corn-based plants in the U.S. are planning to install "bolt-on" systems, but capital investment has been slow.

One innovator in advanced biofuel technology has seen the writing on the wall and has decided to pick up his biofuel toys and go play in the shale gas boom, where investment is hot.

Alan Shaw, a pioneer, chemist and leader of Codexis Incorporated (NASDAQ:CDXS) (Redwood City, California), the first advanced biofuel technology company, left the company and declared "it's impossible to economically turn crop waste, wood and plants into fuel." Last year, Shaw joined Calysta Energy Incorporated (Menlo Park, California).

Calysta is working on platforms to create sustainable biofuels and industrial chemicals from natural gas, in an effort to reduce petroleum dependence without competing for food, land or water. The U.S. is said to hold more than 90 years of domestic natural gas supply at current usage rates, and it is expected to become a net exporter of natural gas by 2035.

Even Codexis has shut down its biofuel development program and is concentrating on research and development for pharmaceuticals and enzyme products.

Disappointing to hear, as the advanced biofuels industry has spent upward of $3 billion to turn cellulosic material into fuel and make a profit. Perhaps 2014 will be the breakout year.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.