ST. LOUIS, Feb. 28, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has awarded Abengoa Bioenergy a financial assistance grant up to $76 million to design, construct, and operate a first of a kind commercial facility to produce ethanol from lignocellulosic biomass. Abengoa Bioenergy, a global producer and technology company, is one of the largest producers of ethanol in the world, with production facilities in the United States and Europe. The award is part of the DOE program to promote the demonstration and commercial deployment of lignocellulosic conversion technology for ethanol production
The program is part of the President's Clean Fuels Initiative which provides funding on a cost shared basis over three years to support the design, construction, and operation of lignocellulosic biorefineries in the United States. The award will be used by Abengoa Bioenergy to lower the initial deployment risk of developing and building the first generation of lignocellulosic plants dedicated to ethanol production and further develops the company's unique technology. Abengoa Bioenergy applied for this program with an ambitious project with a production goal of 100 Mgal/y of ethanol annually.
When completed, the facility will produce 15 Mgal from lignocellulosic biomass and 85 Mgal from starch. The energy for the process will be obtained via biomass gasification, improving the life cycle of the ethanol produced. This plant will place Abengoa Bioenergy in a unique position to advance the commercial deployment of its enzymatic and thermochemical conversion technology for fuels and energy production. Abengoa Bioenergy plans to build a hybrid plant capable of processing biomass and starch that will lower the investment risk and accelerate the commercial deployment of the enzymatic hydrolysis technology. The hybrid plant is scheduled to operate towards the end of 2010 with a total estimated cost of more than 300 million dollars.
"Abengoa Bioenergy will play a critical role in helping to bring cellulosic ethanol to market, and teaching us how we can produce it in a more cost effective manner," Secretary Bodman said. "Ultimately, success in producing inexpensive cellulosic ethanol could be the key to eliminating our nation's addiction to oil. By relying on American ingenuity and on American farmers for fuel, we will enhance our nation's energy and economic security."
This project marks the next step in the Abengoa Bioenergy strategic plan to commercialize the lignocellulosic technology. "This new partnership with the DOE is the continuation of an already successful collaboration started in 2003 that led to the construction of a pilot plant (1 ton/day of biomass) in York, Neb. This facility can fractionate, hydrolyze and ferment biomass sugars directly into ethanol. This unique facility is scheduled to be fully operational in the spring of 2007," says Gerson Santos, Abengoa Bioenergy R&D Corporate Director Santos.
Javier Salgado, CEO of Abengoa Bioenergy, adds, "With this project, Abengoa Bioenergy continues the journey that began in 1995 to establish a leadership position in biofuels technology and production capacity to provide a sustainable energy alternative to the transportation sector. This new facility allows us to reach a major technology milestone in our program."
About Abengoa Bioenergy
Abengoa Bioenergy is the first European manufacturer, fifth in the U.S.A, and the only world manufacturer of bioethanol with more than 1000 "MI/y" of total installed capacity.
Abengoa is a technology company applying innovative solutions for sustainable development in the infrastructures, environment and energy. It quotes on the Stock Exchange with a capitalization of more than 2,524.1 million Euros (27/02/2007) and is present in more then seventy countries, where it operates with five Business Units: Solar, Bioenergy, Environmental Services, Information Technologies and Industrial Engineering and Construction (www.abengoa.com).