Grant Will Be Used to Facilitate Integration of ClearFuels’ Gasification Technology With Rentech’s Proven FT Process for Production of Renewable Synthetic Fuels at Rentech’s Colorado Facility
AIEA, Hawaii--(BUSINESS WIRE)--ClearFuels Technology Inc. (“ClearFuels”) and Rentech, Inc. (NYSE AMEX:RTK) jointly announced today that they have been selected to receive up to $23 million as a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (“DOE”) to construct a biomass gasifier at Rentech’s Energy Technology Center (“RETC”) in Denver. The gasifier will be integrated with Rentech’s Product Demonstration Unit (“PDU”) for the production of renewable synthetic fuels from biomass. The proposed project team led by ClearFuels includes Rentech, URS, Linde/Hydro-Chem, Hawaiian Electric Company, National Renewable Energy Lab (“NREL”), and Hawaii Natural Energy Institute (“HNEI”).
The grant, which is subject to final negotiation of documents with the DOE, will be used to manufacture and install at RETC a 20 ton-per-day ClearFuels biomass gasifier designed to produce synthesis gas (“syngas”) from sugar cane bagasse, virgin wood waste and other cellulosic feedstocks. The gasifier will be integrated with Rentech’s existing PDU, which uses the Rentech Process and UOP’s upgrading technologies to produce renewable drop-in synthetic jet and diesel fuels at demonstration scale of 10 barrels per day. This joint demonstration of an integrated bio-refinery will lead to the final design basis for commercial facilities that are expected to use the combined technologies.
Rentech has a 25% strategic ownership interest in ClearFuels, which has begun development of multiple commercial-scale biomass-to-energy projects in the southeastern United States, Hawaii and internationally. These projects are expected to use an integrated ClearFuels-Rentech design and be co-located at sugar mills, and at wood and other biomass processing facilities.
It is expected that the life-cycle carbon footprint of renewable fuels produced by ClearFuels-Rentech technologies can be near zero, depending on the feedstock. The ClearFuels gasification and Rentech Fischer-Tropsch conversion technologies have been developed tested and improved independently over the past 15 years. The unique integration of these technologies represents a breakthrough in the design of versatile biofuels production plants, promising a definitive advance in thermochemical biofuels conversion efficiency and flexibility, making ClearFuels and its partners leaders in producing multiple liquid fuels from the same biorefinery.
The renewable synthetic diesel and jet fuels will meet all applicable fuels standards, be compatible with existing engines and pipelines, and burn cleanly, with emissions of particulates and other regulated pollutants significantly lower than emissions of traditional fuels. Jet fuel produced from the Fischer-Tropsch process, on which Rentech’s technology is based, is the only alternative fuel type currently certified for use by the U.S. Air Force and by the Federal Aviation Administration for use in commercial aircraft.
Eric Darmstaedter, Chief Executive Officer of ClearFuels, commented, “We are pleased that our team has been selected for this DOE grant; and we appreciate all the support we received from our partners and investors. Validating this integrated technology is particularly important as a step forward in our objective of lowering our oil imports into our home state of Hawaii while supporting local agriculture.” Mr. Darmstaedter continued, “The co-location and integration of the ClearFuels technology at Rentech’s PDU provides us a lower cost and lower risk pathway to commercialization. Rentech’s experience successfully operating its PDU since 2008 will help facilitate a rapid and successful commercial validation of our integrated technologies.”
Commenting on the award, D. Hunt Ramsbottom, President and Chief Executive Officer of Rentech, said, “We are pleased that Rentech and our partner, ClearFuels, have been selected to receive a DOE grant for an integrated bio-refinery to produce synthetic fuels. The ClearFuels gasification technology complements our Rentech-SilvaGas biomass gasification process, enabling plant configurations that can be optimized for various biomass feedstocks and markets.” Mr. Ramsbottom continued, “The award will be an important step in furthering Rentech’s leadership position in the bio-energy space and will create green jobs at our Colorado synthetic fuels facility. We’d like to thank the DOE for recognizing the potential importance of innovative biomass-to-fuels technologies, and the impacts they can have on domestic energy production, carbon reduction, and the economy. We also appreciate the support we have received from the state of Colorado in advancing our project.”
The ClearFuels-Rentech project is one of nineteen integrated bio-refinery projects selected to receive funds from the DOE under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to accelerate the construction and operation of pilot, demonstration, and commercial scale bio-refineries. The DOE indicated that these projects will validate refining technologies and help lay the foundation for full commercial-scale development of an advanced bio-fuels industry in the United States.
In a press release announcing the grants on December 4, 2009, DOE Secretary Steven Chu said, “Advanced biofuels are critical to building a cleaner, more sustainable transportation system in the U.S. These projects will help establish a domestic industry that will create jobs here at home and open new markets across rural America.”
About Rentech, Inc.
Rentech, Inc. (www.rentechinc.com), incorporated in 1981, provides clean energy solutions. The Company's Rentech-SilvaGas biomass gasification process can convert multiple biomass feedstocks into synthesis gas (syngas) for production of renewable fuels and power. Combining the gasification process with Rentech's unique application of syngas conditioning and clean-up technology and the patented Rentech Process based on Fischer-Tropsch chemistry, Rentech offers an integrated solution for production of synthetic fuels from biomass. The Rentech Process can also convert syngas from fossil resources into ultra-clean synthetic jet and diesel fuels, specialty waxes and chemicals. Final product upgrading is provided under an alliance with UOP, a Honeywell company. Rentech develops projects and licenses these technologies for application in synthetic fuels and power facilities worldwide. Rentech Energy Midwest Corporation, the Company's wholly-owned subsidiary, manufactures and sells nitrogen fertilizer products including ammonia, urea ammonia nitrate, urea granule, and urea solution in the corn-belt region of the central United States.
About ClearFuels Technology Inc.
ClearFuels (www.clearfuels.com) and its partners are developing advanced sustainable biorefineries that convert multiple mixed cellulosic biomass feedstocks into sustainable, high-value energy products including renewable Fischer-Tropsch (“FT”) diesel and jet fuel, ethanol, hydrogen and power at industry-leading yields. The ClearFuels proprietary thermochemical conversion process is based on its advanced High Efficiency Hydrothermal Reformation (HEHTR) technology for biomass-to-syngas conversion (BTG). This modular flexible BTG technology platform, in combination with various synthetic gas-to-liquid (GTL) technologies and co-locating its biorefineries at sugar mills, wood processing and other biomass processing facilities, provides a reduced risk, lower overall cost commercial strategy in line with ClearFuels vision for production of clean clear biofuels.
For More Information
Please contact: Julie Dawoodjee, Vice President of Investor Relations and Communications, Rentech, Inc. at 310.571.9800, extension 341, or by email at ir@rentk.com.
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