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E-mail StoryBiodiesel facility under way
Legislation may boost market for plant's product
| Thursday, Aug 30 2007 9:55 PM
Last Updated: Thursday, Aug 30 2007 10:01 PM
A local oil and gas producer is venturing into the alternative fuels arena.
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A biodiesel plant is being built near Interstate 5 and Old River Road by Crimson Renewable Energy, a limited property of Crimson Resource Management.
Crimson Resource Management operates oil and gas production assets locally and also owns the former Chevron natural gas processing plant in Taft.
Crimson Renewable Energy was formed by the company to develop and operate renewable energy production facilities.
The local biodiesel plant will be its first. Construction recently got under way and is expected to be complete this spring. It will have the capacity to produce 30 million gallons of biodiesel a year.
Current statewide production capacity is about 20 million gallons, according to the National Biodiesel Board.
"I think we've turned the corner on this issue as a country, politically and socially," said Harry Simpson, president of Crimson Renewable Energy. "We think renewable energy is going to be an increasingly growing part of the energy landscape."
Bringing in oil
Soybean oil from the Midwest will be brought in by train to produce 100 percent biodiesel at the plant. However, the company may switch to regionally made feedstocks like canola and mustard seed oils in the future. The facility can handle virgin vegetable oils and animal fats.
Since March, Crimson Renewable Energy has supplied biodiesel produced out-of-state to regional distributors. Its customers include Fleet Card Fuels, a Bakersfield-based regional fueling company, which now offers biodiesel at the pump at its Kimber Avenue fueling station.
California's biodiesel production and demand is relatively low compared to other parts of the country, such as the Midwest. But several factors could help that market grow in the next few years. Legislation is under way to require diesel sold in the state to contain 2 percent biodiesel.
That alone would boost demand in the state to almost 80 million gallons a year, Simpson said. State Sen. Dean Florez, D-Shafter, has also introduced a series of bills that would provide tax incentives for biodiesel production, encourage the use of biodiesel in school buses and government vehicles and require engine manufacturers to make warranties good for fuel that contains up to 20 percent biodiesel.
Studies on biodiesel
But not everyone is sold on the alternative fuel.
Critics say studies have shown the fuel emits more smog-forming nitrogen oxides than petroleum fuels. However, proponents, including Crimson, point to more recent studies showing those emissions are about the same.
The California Air Resources Board is studying biodiesel emissions and will start drafting regulations for the fuel in the near future, said California Air Resources Board spokeswoman Gennet Paauwe.
Crimson will also refine crude glycerin -- a byproduct of the biodiesel production -- into a pharmaceutical-grade product at the local plant. Glycerin is used in a variety of consumer products, including soap and shampoo, Simpson said. To do so, the company will invest in costlier stainless steel equipment and obtain U.S. Food and Drug Administration certification.
"We wanted to make this, as much as possible, a closed-loop facility," Simpson said. "That's part of the philosophy of what we were trying to accomplish on an environmental level."
The company is also in the testing phase for another facility that would convert waste biomass, such as cow manure, into natural gas.