Biodico, Navy sign renewable fuel agreement for tech development

Biodico announced signing a new agreement with the U.S. Navy for the development and evaluation of advanced biofuels and bioenergy. The goal is to jointly develop renewable fuel and energy technologies that are appropriate for use at U.S. Naval and Department of Defense facilities worldwide. The collaboration will optimize the operation of sustainable biorefineries producing renewable petroleum diesel equivalent liquid fuels, biobased products and energy using renewable resources at defense department facilities. The optimization will allow production at the lowest possible cost. The production process will also benefit the commercial sector by providing a cost-effective process to produce renewable fuel and energy in a sustainable manner. The collaboration is partially supported by grants from the California Energy Commission.

Secretary of the Navy, Ray Mabus, has directed the Navy to reduce its dependence on petroleum by 50 percent by 2020. By producing petroleum diesel equivalent liquid fuels, biobased products and energy on-site, the Navy can help meet this objective and provide better security for its energy supplies. Work under the new contract will include a range of technologies including, but not limited to, transesterification, gasification, gas to liquids, hydrogenation, anaerobic digestion, catalysis, and the production and processing of feedstocks and coproducts.

California State Sen. Fran Pavley, D-Agoura Hills, remarked, “This announcement is an exciting outcome of the collaboration between Biodico, the Navy and the California Energy Commission. This work is a direct result of California's commitment to reduce our dependence on foreign oil. The collaboration between Biodico, the Navy and the California Energy Commission will enhance our national security, provide new jobs and improve the environment. It will demonstrate and commercialize advanced biofuel and bioenergy technologies that will be utilized throughout the world. The integration of sustainable agriculture with renewable combined heat and power produced on-site will produce inexpensive advanced biofuels.”

According to Biodico's President and Founder Russell Teall, “As part of this agreement we are building a sustainable biorefinery at Naval Base Ventura County that will produce biofuel and bioenergy at prices competitive with unsubsidized conventional fuel and power. The facility is privately funded, with some of the innovations supported by grants from the California Energy Commission. Sen. Pavley's landmark initiatives have helped make this project possible.”

Biodico's Chairman of the Board JJ Rothgery added, “The agreement signed today builds upon our original agreement with the Navy first signed in May 2002. It is appropriate that this new agreement is being signed on our 10-year anniversary working with the Navy. Our objective is to privately fund sustainable biorefineries at DoD facilities around the world at no cost to the U.S. taxpayer, and to eliminate our dependence on foreign oil.”