Biofuel Update

From PR-US Newswire:

MEAD, Neb., Jan. 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Dennis Langley, CEO of E3 BioFuels, released the following statement on reports that President Bush will propose a "massive" increase in U.S. ethanol usage in his State of the Union address this Tuesday:

"We welcome the President's proposal for a huge increase in use of biofuels, and E3 BioFuels is uniquely prepared to supply the ethanol needed in a way that is environmentally sound.

In a few short weeks E3 BioFuels will be producing commercial quantities of ethanol in the heartland of America in a way that's never been done before, virtually eliminating the need for fossil fuels in ethanol production.

Our Genesis plant in Mead, Nebraska, combines the proven technologies of an ethanol refinery, a cattle feedlot or dairy, and anaerobic digesters that turn cow manure into biogas fuel, into a radically new closed-loop system that is the only one in the world ready to produce ethanol with a minimal environmental footprint. It has multiple benefits beyond producing ethanol: It removes large volumes of methane (23 times as potent a greenhouse gas as carbon dioxide) from the atmosphere. It also greatly reduces agricultural runoff, the leading source of water pollution in the United States.

Ethanol producers need a level playing field to compete against Big Oil. New policies can help rapidly expand cutting-edge ethanol production methods such as ours. And while other visionary companies, such as cellulose-to- ethanol producers, hope for a breakthrough within the next five to 10 years, E3 BioFuels is starting commercial production now. Our Genesis plant will serve as a template for many more such plants of increasing size that we intend to build and license in the next five years.

We call on President Bush to work with the new Congress to come up with a biofuels policy that can be embraced by Republicans and Democrats from the Midwest to the coasts. We understand there are some critics of ethanol. We invite them to come to Mead and see the E3 difference. It's a new day, and there's a new way to make ethanol.

We believe America can get 25% of its liquid fuel needs from domestic agriculture by 2025, and 50% by 2050, including ethanol and biodiesel. This will have a profound impact on the way we produce and use energy, and help wean the country from its dependence on foreign oil, curb global warming pollution, and revitalize rural America. This is a great moment when all the factors are coming together for American technology to lead the world in an energy revolution."

If these claims are true, it is a big step forward for ethanol. The biggest challenge that ethanol has faced is that it takes as much fossil fuels to make as it was "saving"...if E3BioFuels has solved that problem, it is a significant step in the right direction. Energy independence begins at home...