Jatropha & Malaysia - an analysis

A good article on the prospects of jatropha, with a Malaysia focus. Also mentions that “jatro-preneurs” and “jatro-preneurs” could drop in at the JatrophaWorld 2009 convention to be held in Kuala Lumpur in the middle of February 2009...this is apparently one the highly attended jatropha gatherings in the world.

Interesting

posted by Ecacofonix @ 5:55 PM 0 Comments

Jatropha Investments

Several governments in the region have announced plans for massive planting programs. The Indian government is targeting 13.5 million hectares, or 33.5 million acres, for jatropha cultivation by 2012; in the Philippines, a British firm, NRG Chemical Engineering, has set up a joint venture with the state-owned Philippine National Oil to construct a biodiesel refinery and two ethanol distilleries.

NRG Chemical says that it will invest $600 million in jatropha plantations that will cover over a million hectares, mainly on the islands of Palawan and Mindanao.

Even Myanmar is joining the fray, with the director general of Myanmar's energy planning department being quoted over the summer saying that the country hopes to have 2.8 million hectares of jatropha plantations by the end of next year. The country has already planted 650,000 hectares, according to news reports.

Read more info here

Labels: Jatropha-Investment

posted by Sudha @ 8:16 AM 0 Comments

Why Jatropha?

Jatropha curcas is proven to be one of the most promising sources of biodiesel. Jatropha is a non-food crop that can grow in wastelands and yields more than four times as much fuel per hectare as soybean, and more than ten times that of corn. Nonetheless, the lower cost of subsidized diesel, makes the commercial-scale cultivation of jatropha not economically viable. The revenues from selling the carbon credit from plantation as well as substitution of diesel, however, will make the project sustainable. Furthermore, jatropha cultivation has a huge potential to alleviate soil degradation, desertification and deforestation by greening the vast wasteland while providing employment to rural extremely poor and marginalized communities.

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posted by Sudha @ 1:54 AM 0 Comments

Jatropha Oil for Energy Partners Chile Ltd...

Gold Star Biofuels, a Goldstar Farms Ltd. company based in Ghana, has secured a contract to build small biodiesel production facilities throughout Chile to produce a combined total capacity of 77 MMgy from Chilean jatropha oil for Energy Partners Chile Ltd. A B20 biodiesel blend will be used to produce electricity at Energy Partners Chile’s 43-megawatt power generation facility in Degan on the island of Chiloe.

According to Jack Holden, executive director for Gold Star Biofuels, the company has commitments from farmers in Chile to grow jatropha on 2.5 million acres. “We like to find land where other things don't grow very well or land that has been fallow,” Holden said. He said the biofuels company will set up eight separate refineries in Chile that will each produce more than 100,000 liters (26,400 gallons) of biodiesel per day. Holden said the technology provider will be USFuelTech LLC of Aiken, S.C., which provides turnkey, modular biodiesel refineries.

Gold Star Biofuels plans to begin cultivating jatropha in Chile and within two years will deliver biodiesel to Energy Partners Chile for power generation.

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Labels: Jatropha-Investment

posted by Sudha @ 9:31 PM 0 Comments

Jatropha- The Fuel Of Future

The Indian Army which is actively particiapting in the program has planted Jatropha in 300 hectares to conduct key tests and uses oil from the plant’s seed as bio-diesel to power its tanks. The fuel mix comprises 80 per cent diesel and 20 per cent Jatropha oil. The Army is keen on Jatropha because it believes in case of war the first casualty will be import of petroleum products.

There are now several hundred hectares of Jartopha plantations across the country without any government push, policy or subsidies that’s because Jatropha is a hardy species and can grow on wasteland. It grows almost anywhere, even on gravelly, sandy and saline soils. It can thrive on the poorest stony soil and grow in the crevices of rocks.

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Labels: Jatropha-Company

posted by Sudha @ 9:24 PM 0 Comments

UC-Davis aims to tap exotic jatropha plant as biofuel source for California

January 14, 2009

University of California-Davis engineers, plant scientists and geneticists are heading a Chevron-sponsored project to develop the Jatropha curcas plant as a crop for biodiesel production in California. The three-year collaborative research program, now nearing its first year of completion, focuses on plant domestication, yield improvements and harvest optimization.

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posted by Ecacofonix @ 7:59 AM 1 Comments

Jatropha Reality Check: Upcoming Webcast Shares Latest Insights

Jan, 2009

In this time of global economic uncertainty, a top question of Jatropha developers is, "What impact will the current economic crisis have on the Jatropha sector and its prominence as a viable, sustainable biofuel?" To address this critical concern and more, a free 20 January webinar has been scheduled. As a precursor to Jatropha World Asia 2009, this not-to-be-missed webcast will lend crucial answers to hard-hitting inquiries by Jatropha investors.

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posted by Ecacofonix @ 7:58 AM 0 Comments

Jatropha in Real Time

From China to Brazil, countries have begun setting aside tens of thousands of acres for the cultivation of jatropha – a plant many experts say is the most promising source for biodiesel. At the same time, companies from Europe and India have begun buying up land throughout Africa to establish jatropha plantations.

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posted by Sudha @ 10:51 PM 0 Comments

JatrophaTech opens new nursery in Borneo

These nurseries are designed with the aim of producing up to 20,000 Jatropha saplings per nursery per month. Using advanced technology to create ultra healthy plants, these saplings are typically ready to be transplanted to the ground after only 4 weeks in the nursery. With survival rates of over 99% when transplanted, the nurseries are now proving their worth in several countries. A unique modular design means that Jatrophatech is able to construct facilities that can cope with just about any size of planting requirement.

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posted by Sudha @ 10:55 PM 0 Comments

Tissue Culture Technique for Multiping Jatropha Production

Most of the jatropha plantations in India today use seed-generated plants, where it’s difficult to maintain the genetic quality of seeds in subsequent generations.
“By using tissue culture technique, it’s possible to mass multiply superior planting material from a source, irrespective of season, climate or volume,” said Geetaa Singh, executive director of Labland.

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Labels: Jatropha-Cultivation

posted by Sudha @ 10:29 PM 0 Comments

Jatropha Project for Himachal

Jatropha has been grown on an experimental basis in the low-lying Una and Bilaspur districts. This has encouraged the government to promote its production on a large scale in the lower hills.

Experts say jatropha is a hardy plant, which can also be grown in wastelands. The seeds of the plant are a rich source of eco-friendly oil. It produces more than four times bio-diesel than soyabean and 10 times more than corn.

The trees produce around 1,600 litres of oil per hectare. The demand for bio-diesel is growing by the day due to shrinking reserves of conventional sources of oil across the globe, besides the caused to the environment.
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Labels: Jatropha-Company

posted by Sudha @ 9:52 PM 0 Comments