Cellulosic ethanol moving closer to reality

Prairie Business
Published August 31 2009
By: Cole Gustafson, Prairie Business Magazine

The future is now for cellulosic ethanol. Roughly 300 million gallons of planned commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol plants are in various stages of planning and development across the country.

For years the stock answer to when cellulosic ethanol produced from plant materials or wood will arrive has been the same. When asked, industry officials and insiders have consistently said it will be four to five years before commercial production becomes viable.

Not anymore. The future is now for cellulosic ethanol.

Roughly 300 million gallons of planned commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol plants are in various stages of planning and development across the country, according to Nathan Schock, a spokesperson with Sioux Falls-based POET, although financing hurdles may slow or derail some of those projects.

Read the full story