Government assistance to alternative transport fuels

If, like me, you have often read about how the incoming excise on alternative fuels is going to make it difficult for the fledgling industry to compete against fossil fuel the following article may provide some clarity. It is a few years old so if anyone has a current version please let me know. In [...]

Orbital technology to be used in Brazilian flex-fuel engines

Perth based Orbital Corporation has announced that its FlexDI™ technology has been selected for a new family of high efficiency heavy duty flex-fuel engines currently being developed in Brazil. The technology will be used by Sygma Motors on two engineering programs for Vale Solutions in Energy. The application of the FlexDI™ technology will commence with [...]

Koreans patent seaweed to ethanol

The Korea Institute of Industrial Technology has filed an International patent application for a method of producing biofuel using sea algae. This is the first time I’ve attempted to read a patent and I’ve got to tell you that most of it makes no sense whatsoever. However, some of it is in plain English. Abstract [...]

NSW Maritime warns on ethanol blends in marine engines

On the back of the NSW Government announcing mandatory use of  ethanol blended fuel (previous post) NSW Maritime has released a statement advising all boat owners to check with a local dealer about the suitability of ethanol blend fuels for their marine petrol engines. NSW Maritime cites the follow risks: Ethanol can affect some fibreglass [...]

Reading: Fuel for thought

While digging around the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) web site I discovered Fuel for thought, a publication by the Future Fuels Forum 2007. This June 2008 publication informs us how the Future Fuels Forum thinks transport fuels will pan out in our future with modelling from now to 2050.  It is an [...]

CSIRO investigates energy efficiencies for Australian grain growers

CSIRO scientists have been investigating potential opportunities in energy efficiency, regional biodiesel self sufficiency and bioenergy production for Australian grain growers. The research is explained in an article entitled Bioenergy opportunities for grain growers in the December issue of Farming Ahead magazine. The article explains that there is potential for Australian grain farms to improve [...]

Locally produced four-cylinder Holden due in 2010

Holden and the Prime Minister held a combined press conference today at the Holden plant in Adelaide to announce the production of a new front-wheel-drive, four-cylinder car at the Elizabeth plant. The new car will be designed and engineered at Port Melbourne in Victoria and will commence production in the third quarter of 2010. The [...]

The state of ethanol

On the 6th of December 2008 the New South Wales State Government announced that they will triple the existing 2 percent ethanol fuel mandate in the next two years and mandate a 10 percent ethanol blend (E10)  in all regular grade unleaded petrol (RON 91 – 93) by 1 July 2011. They will also introduce [...]

Can Holden really bring second generation E85 to Australia?

Holden (General Motors) has gained a lot of press coverage from the fact that they are going to introduce locally-built cars that are capable of running on E85 by 2010. The press release was picked up by most major news providers so it was virtually impossible to miss. Just in case you did miss it, [...]

Enffue expands into Australia

Enffue is a brand owned by Carotino Sdn Bhd, a vertically integrated Malaysian palm oil company that produces biodiesel. On the surface that doesn’t mean much to Australians but when you dig a little deeper you realise SAFF is most likely going to be rebranded to Enffue.