Changing World Technologies Calls for Expanded Biomass Energy Tax Credit
Cannot Meet Demand for Technology Without Level Playing Field 4.7.2005
Contact:
Julie Gross Gelfand
HLD/Blankman Public Relations
(516) 536-6811 or (212) 896-3926
jgelfand@hldbnow.com
http://www.changingworldtech.com/information_center/press_releases.asp?id=21
West Hempstead, NY - After a decade of intensive development, the first commercial-scale waste-to-oil plant based on the Thermal Conversion Process (TCP) of Changing World Technologies is successfully processing up to 270 tons of poultry offal into 300 barrels of oil daily in Carthage, Missouri. Unfortunately, while the science works, political technicalities are preventing our company from meeting the demand to expand our U.S. operations, says CWT Chairman & CEO Brian Appel.
About the Biodiesel Tax Credit CWT is unable to expand its U.S. operations due to limitations on the tax credit definition created by the Jobs Bill of 2004 (PL 108-357), which promotes the development of biodiesel fuel from specific feedstocks, to the exclusion of other renewable energy sources such as the high-quality oil produced by TCP, Mr. Appel explains.
The Jobs Bill grants a tax credit of 50 cents to $1.00 per gallon to biodiesel defined as mono-alkyl esters of a long chain fatty acid, specifically derived from virgin soybeans and used cooking oils. CWTs TCP-derived fuel, which meets the universal definition of biodiesel as a liquid fuel produced from biomass, and which utilizes animal waste from nearby poultry processing facilities as its feedstock, is excluded from the tax credit.
The exclusion is unfortunate because our fuel is superior in several ways, says Mr. Appel. It can be derived from a broad mix of waste products that are often difficult to dispose of otherwise, and it can be used as a gallon-for-gallon substitute for traditional diesel, rather than merely as an additive. Our process also destroys prions, the cause of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, and along with oil creates a fertilizer shown in tests by Auburn University to be one of the most effective natural fertilizers ever made. Because TCP utilizes above-ground waste streams, it also has the potential to arrest global warming by reducing the use of fossil fuels.
All of these benefits should provide motivation for the U.S. government to support further development and expansion of TCP and other bio-mass energy technologies, says Mr. Appel.
The Iowa Egg Board is just one of the commercial enterprises supportive of an expanded tax credit to permit additional TCP plants to be built. We are in need of facilities that can provide solutions to the increasingly problematic waste disposal issue surrounding spent hens, the board recently wrote. One of the new opportunities for processing these hens is the TCP renewable fuels plant in Carthage, MO. This plant currently takes approximately 20 tons of material daily from nearby egg laying operations and turns that problematic waste stream into usable fuel
Encouraging such alternatives will help the Iowa egg industry continue to add value to the states and the nations economy.
The Need for a Level Playing Field Not extending the tax credit to other liquid bio-fuels causes the non-included fuels such as ours to face very significant disadvantages, Mr. Appel says. The credit acts to subsidize the purchase of feedstocks such as animal fats used in the production of biodiesel, which not only creates a competitive disadvantage for other biomass-derived fuels, but also simultaneously dries up the market for feedstocks by making them economically unavailable to non-covered processes. This dual negative impact drives the non-included fuels out of the market in the United States. Action must be taken to allow additional bio-fuel technologies to compete and produce quality alternative energy sources for this emerging market.
Worldwide media coverage of CWTs TCP technology from scientific quarters such as Scientific American, MITs Technology Review and Discover magazine, to general news media including the New York Times, CNN, Fortune, BusinessWeek, Fast Company and others has driven global interest in the companys plans. CWT has fielded over 50,000 inquiries in the past two years, including many from public sector and private business enterprises interested in establishing TCP plants in their markets.
Energy costs are now the single most important factor affecting the cost of agricultural production in this country, as reported this week in USA Today, Mr. Appel said. At a time when the United States is dependent upon foreign sources for more than 50 percent of our energy supply, the playing field must be leveled to encourage the growth of new renewable liquid fuels by broadening the definition of eligible technologies. Parity for bio-fuels must be achieved by extending the biodiesel credit or providing a similar credit to other sustainable fuel sources.
A Competitive Marketplace CWT asserts that:
·Governmental policy should encourage and support economic competition. The current tax incentive drives those who do not qualify for the credit from the market.
·The stability of the nations energy supply is dependent on policy makers to create mechanisms that will decrease U.S. dependency on foreign sources of energy. Meaningful action to foster the development of additional domestic sources of quality fuels is necessary to support economic growth and energy independence.
·To maximize the return on the expenditure of public funds, government policies should work synergistically to result in the development of viable products and technologies that can be part of the solution to the national energy crisis.
·Encouraging alternative fuel production via a level playing field will hasten the development of high quality products to assure that a national market for these alternative fuels truly is developed.
·Turning waste materials into valuable, marketable fuel alternatives ameliorates U.S. waste disposal and animal disease control problems.
We should be looking to Europe to see how other developed nations are addressing the bio-fuel issue. In contrast to the United States, the European Union is very progressive in encouraging development and production of all bio-mass derived energy, Mr. Appel states. In a 2003 directive, the EU set forth a policy to encourage the development and availability of alternative fuels derived from a wide range of biomass sources.
The directive defines biofuels simply as liquid or gaseous fuels
produced from biomass and lists 10 products that it at least considers biofuels. The oil produced from CWTs TCP process is covered by the synthetic biofuels category, which is defined as synthetic hydrocarbons or mixtures of synthetic hydrocarbons, which have been produced from biomass.
In as much as we occupy the same planet and are dealing with the same economic and environmental issues as Europe, the United States should be playing a leadership role in the discovery of new technologies and resources to solve our energy problem, Mr. Appel states. A level playing field that encourages R&D and creates economic incentives to spur a vital market in clean, easily accessible new energy sources is absolutely critical.
About TCP CWT's Thermal Conversion Process reforms organic waste into a high-value energy resource, without combustion or incineration. TCP breaks down waste into its smallest chemical units and reforms them into new combinations to produce alternative fuels and specialty chemicals. The process emulates the earths natural geothermal activity, whereby organic material is converted into fossil fuel under conditions of extreme heat and pressure over millions of years. TCP uses pipes and controls temperature and pressure to reduce the bio-remediation process from millions of years to mere hours. TCP is also more than 80% energy efficient.
For more information, visit Changing World Technologies online at www.changingworldtech.com
The ConAgra plant in Carthage, MO is either shut down or is in very limited production, and the cost of the end product is much higher than originally estimated.
One major problem - a horrendous odor.
http://www.joplinglobe.com/archives/story.php?story_id=92685
http://www.fortune.com/fortune/smallbusiness/articles/0,15114,1018747,00.html