Spanish company Ferry Group is to invest €42/US$55.2 million in a project for the production of biomass fuel pellets in Bulgaria.
The 3-year project consists of establishing plantations of paulownia trees near the city of Tran. Paulownia is a fast-growing tree used for the commercial production of fuel pellets.
France tests first flex-fuel cars in biofuel push
Brazil's flex-fuel fever needs no introduction. Its successful use of the cars that allow drivers to choose between different fuels has opened the eyes of many other countries. Amongst them, France. On Thursday it launched its first tests of so-called flex-fuel cars that can run on ethanol or conventional fuel in its latest push to promote wider use of renewable energy.
The Marne regional government in eastern France has a special permit to test the ethanol-based E85 fuel, and use it to run a fleet of seven Ford flex-fuel cars for a year.
E85 is currently not authorized in France, but government approval is expected by early next year and the fuel should be widely available by 2010.
"Our goal is simple: we want cars on the market by the end of the decade that can be driven equally on petrol or biofuels," Industry Minister Francois Loos said.
"Biofuels are one way of improving our energy independence, ensuring the protection of the environment and providing new markets for French agriculture," he said at the launch of the tests in Marne.
E85 is 85 percent ethanol, a biofuel derived from sugar beet or cereals. France's biofuel production is mainly biodiesel, largely made from rapeseed and then blended with conventional diesel. Some 75 percent of French cars run on diesel and this share is expected to grow in the coming years.
Brazil, the world's top sugar and ethanol producer, and Sweden have taken the lead in the flex-fuel car sector and only Ford and Saab offer such models for the French market.
But Loos said he hoped French car makers would offer similar models on the market. Renault has said it would make half of its cars flex-fuel models from mid-2009, the industry ministry noted in a press release.
NOT JUST IN BRAZIL
Loos has encouraged French oil companies to supply the low volatility petrol needed to incorporate pure ethanol directly into fuels before the end of 2006. However, the oil industry has been slow in producing such fuels.
"This experiment shows to those who still have doubts that it's possible to have cars running on ethanol, and not just in Brazil and Sweden," Loos said.
Instead of low volatility petrol, oil companies in France produce a type of ethanol-derived ether known as ETBE (ethyl tertiary butyl ether) which is then mixed with conventional fuel.
Siplec, a top French petrol distributor, has by-passed the oil majors by importing low volatility fuel from other European countries to become the first in the country to sell petrol mixed with a five percent pure ethanol content.
Siplec will supply the Marne authorities with the E85 fuel needed to run the flex-fuel cars.
"This experimental project...marks the beginning of a post-oil France and a France of tomorrow," Loos said.
Reuters.
The Marne regional government in eastern France has a special permit to test the ethanol-based E85 fuel, and use it to run a fleet of seven Ford flex-fuel cars for a year.
E85 is currently not authorized in France, but government approval is expected by early next year and the fuel should be widely available by 2010.
"Our goal is simple: we want cars on the market by the end of the decade that can be driven equally on petrol or biofuels," Industry Minister Francois Loos said.
"Biofuels are one way of improving our energy independence, ensuring the protection of the environment and providing new markets for French agriculture," he said at the launch of the tests in Marne.
E85 is 85 percent ethanol, a biofuel derived from sugar beet or cereals. France's biofuel production is mainly biodiesel, largely made from rapeseed and then blended with conventional diesel. Some 75 percent of French cars run on diesel and this share is expected to grow in the coming years.
Brazil, the world's top sugar and ethanol producer, and Sweden have taken the lead in the flex-fuel car sector and only Ford and Saab offer such models for the French market.
But Loos said he hoped French car makers would offer similar models on the market. Renault has said it would make half of its cars flex-fuel models from mid-2009, the industry ministry noted in a press release.
NOT JUST IN BRAZIL
Loos has encouraged French oil companies to supply the low volatility petrol needed to incorporate pure ethanol directly into fuels before the end of 2006. However, the oil industry has been slow in producing such fuels.
"This experiment shows to those who still have doubts that it's possible to have cars running on ethanol, and not just in Brazil and Sweden," Loos said.
Instead of low volatility petrol, oil companies in France produce a type of ethanol-derived ether known as ETBE (ethyl tertiary butyl ether) which is then mixed with conventional fuel.
Siplec, a top French petrol distributor, has by-passed the oil majors by importing low volatility fuel from other European countries to become the first in the country to sell petrol mixed with a five percent pure ethanol content.
Siplec will supply the Marne authorities with the E85 fuel needed to run the flex-fuel cars.
"This experimental project...marks the beginning of a post-oil France and a France of tomorrow," Loos said.
Reuters.
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