Algae-to-biofuels pilot facility proposed in Massachusetts

Plankton Power and the Regional Technology Development Corp. (RTDC) of Cape Cod announced the establishment of a public-private consortium focused on building a leading-edge facility to produce renewable biofuels from algae.

Under the leadership of Plankton Power, the RTDC, Massachusetts National Guard, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) and Cape Cod Commission are joining forces to establish the Cape Cod Algae Biorefinery. The new facility will focus on pilot and commercial-scale development of algae biodiesel that is cost-competitive with existing petroleum and vegetable-based fuels, with improved performance characteristics.

The planned biorefinery is proposed for construction on five acres of land on the Massachusetts Military Reservation (MMR) in Bourne, Massachusetts, supported by the Massachusetts National Guard, pending legal and regulatory reviews. The pilot facility will provide the required infrastructure for testing commercial scale-up of a breakthrough algae-growth technology resulting from 20 years of cold saltwater species research and production. The biodiesel from Plankton Power algae is a “drop-in” replacement for home heating oil and petroleum diesel and will be produced for commercial distribution. The Cape Cod Algae Biorefinery Consortium recently submitted a $20 million proposal to the United States Department of Energy that would leverage $4 million in private funding to construct the proposed facility. MassDevelopment, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, and Loud Fuel Company are also supporting the initiative.

“Over the next few years, we are ready to set up the MMR as a partner for a number of critical clean-energy initiatives that will not only help the military but boost the regional economy,” said United States Representative Bill Delahunt (D-Mass.). “Working with entrepreneurs and the institutions based in Woods Hole, we want to make the MMR not just a center for the National Guard and Coast Guard, but an incubator for cutting-edge initiatives on algae as fuel, wind and solar energy, and unmanned aircraft for joint military and oceanographic research. The use of algae as a fuel has major potential and can be nurtured right on Cape Cod.”

Beginning in autumn 2010, Plankton Power expects to initiate pilot-scale operations to generate up to one million gallons of biodiesel per year – enough fuel to supply Cape Cod’s current biodiesel usage. The company projects that commercial-scale operations on 100 acres could eventually yield 100 million gallons of biodiesel, which would meet 5 percent of the demand for diesel and home heating fuel in the state of Massachusetts.

Said Curtis S. Felix, CEO and founder of Plankton Power, “The MMR location is ideal for this pilot project – the on-site wastewater treatment plant would provide an excellent source of nutrients for the algae, and MMR’s location close to the Cape Cod Canal would provide a convenient source of seawater as well as a renewable thermal energy source for algae growth and temperature control.”

The algae farm facility’s location near MBL and WHOI will provide Plankton’s team access to the scientific expertise and resources available at the Cape’s two world-leading marine research institutions and facilitate a collaborative approach to address the challenges of efficiently producing commercial quantities of biofuel from algae.