STUFF

Alltech Algae ribbon cut on $200M plant in KY. Production start April.

Diversified Tech (MA) intro'd pulsed el field tech to streamline oil extraction fm algae early in biorefining. Low-cost, low-E process takes price to 10 cents/gal fm $1.75 for conventional drying.

Fed gov spent $15B fm 1789 to 1900.

Joule Unlimited (MA) says they've invented a genetically engineered organism to secrete diesel or ethanol w/sunlight, water and CO2 @ market price. NREL says "unproved". Plans to build demo this yr.

World PV solar production capacity increased ~70% in '10, to near 30GW. One estimate 35GW by mid '11 w/ projected installs 1/5 of that. '10 installs were >double '09. Possibly more bankable figures 25GW production, 17-18GW demand.

Italy, as reported, scaling back solar incentives and now France dropping solar FITs for biogas. 20% drop for solar. Maybe 500MW/yr cap. They installed 720MW in '10, doubling '09. 1GW total installed. (800MW installed in US in '10).

Wind installs in France remained steady freddy @ ~1GW last year. Total cap now 5.7GW, 1.8% total grid supply. 3.7GW wind, 4.1GW solar awaiting grid connect.

Germany still has 3.5GW/yr install target for solar or wind I'm guessing. Est. 7GW installed and supplying 40% of world demand. That may be solar. Go you Germans.

Frost Sullivan: Nigeria 80% of W. Africa NG exports. 725bcf in '09. E. Guinea 180bcf. Majority of exploration offshore. Increased production expected in Nigeria, Congo, Ghana, E. Guinea next 5 yrs. Development of LNG refining in Guinea, Cameroon, Nigeria. Lack of oil refining in area.

Compressed air storage beats batteries at grid scale.

Better Place/Renault: $70k over 5yrs for an EV (electric vehicle). Works in Denmark.

Oops, didn't report Johnson Controls bought ECNG at ~100% premium when it happened days ago.

Achates Power proposing a 2-stroke opposed piston diesel engine that goes back to Junkers in WW2. John Walton investing (his last adventure was FSLR). 10-15% less cost to build and 10-15% less fuel consumption. Looking at '15-'16. Trucks get 5-6 MPG. 5% of vehicles, 25% of fuel consumption. In China 25% of vehicles, 2/3 of consumption. In Aeneid, Achates was Aeneas' friend but didn't say much. Brit navy named a lot of ships after'm.

An arrest today of a Shi'ite cleric demanding democratic reforms in Saudi Arabia. Saud market down 11%. Yep, them Shi'ites really practice democratic principles.

Phosphorus. Depletion. The P in NKP (fertilizer). Six feet of sugar-phosphate coil inside each cell of DNA. Algae: "all you need is sun, water, CO2". Wait a minute. 60 nutrients involved. The Beatles sang all we need is love. Oops. Redfield Ration in algae (1930's). Algae needs C, N and P, 106:16:1. US has ~30 yrs of P left @ present use rate. But present biofuel policy pulls that down to 20 yrs. US reserves ~1.2B tons. 50 lb/ac appplication -> 48B ac of fertilization. Leaching flows to oceans. Algae a highly efficent P muncher. The P munchers. In'it a new band? They do all you need is P? Fish eat the algae, birds eat the fish, birds poop out the P onshore. Sugars fermented into butyric, lactic and acetic acids. Electrodionization seperates the acids. Further fermentations -> butanol. Solazyme one company working on it.

Dupont estimates biofuels $50B now to grow to $75B by '15. 600 new plants needed in next decade to meet cellulosic demand. Butamax joint venture. Globally >200 ethanol plants, >400 sugarcane plants.

And happy trails.