Repreve Renewables will hold an open informational meeting on Freedom Giant Miscanthus—a variety of Miscanthus developed by the company for biofuels production—on Wednesday, 1 August 2012, at the Sampson County Agri-Exposition Center in Clinton from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. At the meeting, farmers can learn more about Freedom Giant Miscanthus as a crop, including planting, growing and harvesting practices, pricing, and how it fits into the Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP) in North Carolina.

With plans to construct the nation’s first cellulosic biofuels facility in Sampson County, Chemtex International was recently awarded support from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s BCAP program to grow energy crops, including Switchgrass and Miscanthus, in Sampson and surrounding counties.

In partnership with the Biofuels Center of North Carolina, Sampson County Cooperative Extension hosted an information session on upcoming energy crop-growing opportunities for local farmers on Thursday, 26 July 2012, at the Sampson County Agri-Exposition Center in Clinton. Representatives from the biofuels company Chemtex, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Services Agency (FSA), and the Biofuels Center delivered presentations and facilitate discussion about the upcoming growing opportunities.

With plans to construct the nation’s first cellulosic biofuels facility in Sampson County, Chemtex International was recently awarded support from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP) to grow energy crops, including Switchgrass and Miscanthus, in Sampson and surrounding counties. The information session addressed the defined window of opportunity to take part in BCAP, as well as crop establishment budgets and revenues. Farmers and landowners were encouraged to sign up to connect with Chemtex and FSA for further supply discussions and contract negotiations.

Strengthening the capabilities statewide for biofuels commercialization is a prime task within the Biofuels Center's legislative and policy mandate, and is key to meeting the state's goal of replacing 10 percent of North Carolina's liquid transportation fuels with biofuels grown and produced within the state.

News 14 Carolina conducted an interview with Center president and CEO Steven Burke about the significance of the Biofuels Accelerator and Campus launch on 1 May 2012 at their studio in Raleigh. 

 

A video of the interview is on News 14 Carolina's site where it can be streamed. Note, there may be a pre-roll advertisement before the interview and some B-Roll selected by News 14, such as food crops, are a poor match for illustrating North Carolina's planned use of cellulosic biomass for biofuels feedstocks.

Inspiring speakers from research communities, business, and politics shared their views and ideas on smart technology in the transition toward the green economy during the sold-out “Technoport 2012: Sharing Possibilities” conference in Trondheim, Norway. Upon the request of the Norwegian government, Biofuels Center president and CEO Steven Burke addressed the 16-18 April conference as a featured speaker.

Norway has an interest in gathering renewable energy leaders, as it seeks models for Nordic pathways to a greener economy. Burke, whose travel and expenses were funded by the Norwegian government, represented the Biofuels Center as America's only agency working comprehensively for all aspects of biofuels development.