Bio Fuel

Bio Fuel Manufacturing

Early County is uniquely positioned to take advantage of the expansion of bio-fuels manufacturing.
Nationally, significant efforts are underway to explore ways in which biotechnology can reduce dependence on fossil fuels; one significant method is bio-fuel manufacturing, i.e., bioalcohols can be made from a wide-range of photosynthetics, such as wood chips, soybeans or corn. Bio-fuels are becoming an increasingly important area of demand, due to production targets set by the Federal Government. The Renewable Fuels, Consumer Protection and Energy Efficiency Act of 2007 set the production target at 13.2 billion gallons of renewable fuels by 2012 - compared with 4 billion gallons produced in 2006. The Federal Government has created a number of tax breaks and grants to encourage US production, as well as setting very high production targets for the years to come. Bio-fuel manufacturing is expected to grow by about 20% per annum over the next five years. Additionally, Alternative Energy were identified as a viable target in the Early County 2055 study by PlaceMakers, LLC.

         Rationale:
         • Access to raw inputs
         • High degree of agricultural specialization
         • Economically disadvantaged population (a basis for government funding)
         • Rail access
         • Government legislation, funding & support

Industry Description
Biofuels are defined as solid, liquid or gaseous fuels derived from relatively recently dead biological material. Theoretically, biofuels can be produced from any (biological) carbon source; although, the most common sources are photosynthetic plants. Various plants and plant-derived materials are used for biofuel manufacturing. Typically Bio-fuel manufacturing produces Bioalcohols which are biologically produced alcohols, most commonly ethanol, and less commonly propanol and butanol, are produced by the action of microorganisms and enzymes through the fermentation of sugars or starches or cellulose.