Tennessee Competing For Leadership Role In Biofuels Industry

by Judy Frank

Within three to five years, Dr. David Millhorn told Chattanooga Rotary Club members Thursday, Tennessee could be a leader in the biofuels industry.

Dr. Millhorn, executive vice president of the University of Tennessee, said the school has entered into a partnership with cellulose biofuels pioneer Mascoma Corp. Together, they hope to build and operate a refinery in Monroe County that produces five million gallons of cellulose ethanol annually.

The facility will be located 35 miles south of Knoxville in Vonore, and construction is expected to begin by the end of this year. Hopefully, it will be operational by 2009, he said.

The collaboration with Mascoma grew out of the UT Biofuels Initiative, a research model designed to reduce American dependence on foreign oil and, at the same time, provide a boost to Tennessee’s economy.

The presentation drew an enthusiastic response from Rotary members, who – less than a week before Halloween – were in a jovial mood even before Dr. Millhorn’s presentation began.

The Chattanoogan.Com, Oct. 29, 2007