18-04-2012

Aquaflow poised to fire up next generation biofuels refining in New Zealand

Aquaflow announced today it has executed a technology cooperation agreement with CRI Catalyst Company (CRI). CRI has exclusive global sublicensing rights to IH2 technology, a commercially viable renewable fuel process developed by Gas Technology Institute (GTI), which is ready for infrastructure investment.

The companies had been working together previously under a Joint Testing and Evaluation Agreement to bring together Aquaflow’s unique capability with algae, mixed and varied feedstocks, and CRI’s license to IH2 technology, to prove their commercial effectiveness in producing hydrocarbon fuel.

Aquaflow director Nick Gerritsen explains “Aquaflow believes it now has a world-leading multi-biomass to biofuels capability and technology offering. This is a robust and highly integrated technology package which can leapfrog other biomass to biofuel technologies because it goes straight to blended fuel stock and avoids intermediate pathways.

“We should be able to produce renewable hydrocarbon fuel that is equivalent to fossil fuel at a cost that is highly competitive with the current per barrel price of crude oil.”

Gerritsen says New Zealand could turn its biomass into enough carbon-neutral biofuel to meet its renewable fuels’ requirement within ten years. “While this could be achieved without carbon taxes or Government subsidies, we believe this is nationally significant and the NZ Government’s support is welcome.”

The technology could be replicated in other parts of the world where suitable feedstocks and waste streams exist.

“We believe this is a game changer. The current estimation of the IH2 process economics suggests it to be among the most economical for renewable hydrocarbon fuel production. The combination of Aquaflow multi-biomass feed and CRI IH2 technologies means that any biomass – algae, wood waste, agricultural waste such as vine prunings, invasive weeds like gorse or broom and solid waste, can be turned into renewable transport fuels.”

“The technology is self-sufficient and means that regional fuel refining is now a real possibility. New Zealand has the opportunity to take advantage of this breakthrough.

The ability to produce our own commercially viable biofuels which integrate with current infrastructure would increase our economic competitiveness, improve our environmental performance and reduce our reliance upon imported crude oil. Benefits would flow through our economy in terms of new jobs and boosts to regional businesses.”

Gerritsen says the next step is to secure the investment needed to build the organisational capability and capacity to execute the company’s project pipeline.

“Plans to demonstrate IH2 technology at the 5-200t/d scale are currently underway. We have a viable technology that’s “ready to go” and that’s what investors are looking for.

“Aquaflow is leading the way with the seamless integration of algae into a variety of feedstocks to produce drop-in fuels and chemicals. This approach gives us the flexibility to develop a multi-biomass feedstock mix specific to available resources worldwide. Aquaflow believes this is a breakthrough for biofuels and a significant advance for algae-based renewable fuels.
”Reaching this stage is a significant achievement for Aquaflow, which has been operating ‘under the radar’ as it worked on the multi-biomass approach and lined up the projects,” comments Gerritsen.