Cow Manure Powered Ethanol Plant To Lower Cost Of Gasoline
Dallas - Panda Energy announced that it would build a 100 million gallon fuel ethanol plant in Haskell County, Kansas. The plant will use a billion pounds of cattle manure each year as a renewable fuel to power the plant's operations. The $120 million facility will refine US corn and milo into fuel ethanol that will be blended with gasoline to produce a clean, low cost fuel for America's cars and trucks. The ethanol produced in this plant will replace the need to import 100 million gallons of gasoline each year.
The Haskell project is Panda's third fuel ethanol project announced this year. In May, Panda announced a 100 million gallon plant in Hereford, Texas and in August the company announced that its second facility would be built in Yuma, Colorado. The combined production of the three announced Panda fuel ethanol plants will replace 300 million gallons of imported gasoline annually. These projects will use a total of three billion pounds of cattle manure a year as a renewable fuel. The manure is gasified and converted into a clean bio-gas used to power the plant. By utilizing bio-gas produced from manure instead of natural gas, each facility will save the equivalent of 1,000 barrels of oil per day.
"With the recent rise in gas prices and natural disasters impacting US oil production, the need for the US to develop alternative fuel sources becomes even more critical. We must protect our future by moving away from foreign oil thereby creating new means to produce fuel domestically," stated Todd Carter, President, Panda Development Group. "The ethanol produced by our Haskell facility will play a major roll in securing America's energy independence. By using manure instead of natural gas to power the plant, we conserve another of our country's depleting natural resources."
"Panda's ethanol facility is just the shot in the arm our county needs as an economic boost," stated Bill Lower, Chairman of the Haskell County Commissioners. "We have the resources here to make this a very viable project and we are pleased Panda has chosen Haskell County to build its manure powered ethanol plant. We are very proud to be the future home of a facility that produces an environmentally clean fuel that will help lower gasoline prices while reducing America's dependence on foreign oil."
"Panda worked very hard to address our questions and develop a broad base of support within our community. Their commitment and sensitivity to local concerns played a major roll in the county's enthusiasm for Panda's new plant," stated Kevin Wagner, Haskell County Economic Development Advisory Board. "We are excited to have an ethanol plant in Haskell County that creates new jobs, strengthens the economy and broadens our tax base while producing a home grown fuel that can help lower the cost of gasoline."
When America's gasoline prices soared above $3.00 per gallon, consumers turned to ethanol blended gasoline for relief. A 10% blend of ethanol with gasoline (E10) is often selling for up to 10 cents less per gallon than regular unleaded. Where an 85% blend of ethanol with gasoline (E85) is available, motorists are finding that it is costing an average 30 cents per gallon less than regular unleaded gasoline. According to the American Coalition for ethanol a 10% ethanol blend reduces carbon monoxide by as much as 25%. Ethanol-blended fuels also reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 35-46%.
The Department of Energy also recently announced that its researchers at the Argonne National Laboratory had completed a study that supports the energy and environmental benefits of producing fuel ethanol from corn and other biomass sources. Their research confirmed that fuel ethanol substantially helps reduce fossil fuel and petroleum use when compared to gasoline. The Argonne research dismisses an ongoing argument about the amount of energy needed to produce fuel ethanol.
SOURCE: Panda Energy