Plankton Power Will Focus On Algae as Biofuel

Plankton Power, an algae based biofuel producer and Regional Technology Development of Cape Cod announced today a joint venture to develop group set out to construct a new research lab which would manufacture renewable biofuels from algae. The new algae plant, aptly named Cape Cod Algae Biorefinery, will be centered on commercial production of algae biodiesel that would be an economical alternative to petrol and vegetable based fuels.  The lab would also focus on enhancing performance of algae based biofuels.

The new biorefinery will also collaborate with the Massachusetts National Guard, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Marine Biological Laboratory, and the Cape Cod Comission, and will be situated right on Cape Cod giving researchers convenient access to seawater. The facility will be built on five-acres of land given by the Massachusetts Military Reservation, and will focus solely on algae technology.

Algae as a biofuel replacement for fossil fuels is becoming an increasingly popular idea, and new research in the field will be welcome. The algae as a source of biofuel is proving to be a good alternative to expensive vegetable based fuels such as corn and sugarcorn which can be costly to produce.

Plankton expects the lab to be fully operational by 2010 and hopes to generate up to one million gallons of algae based biodiesel a year.  The amount of biodiesel is estimated to be enough fuel to supply all of Cape Cod’s current fuel needs.

The Cape Cod Algae Biorefinery Consortium has petitioned the U.S. Department of Energy for funding for the project which is estimated to cost a total of $20 million, the Consortium is expecting to receive at least $4 million of that in private funding. MassDevelopment and Loud Fuel are already signed on to support the project.

Waltham Technologies, also based out of Massachusetts, is using a unique type of blue-green algae to produce biofuel in what is becoming an ever expanding market. The algae market is a cost effective alternative to some fuel supplies as it does not require a lot of land to grow, can be artificially manufactured in a lab, and is relatively cheap to produce.

The Cape Cod area is becoming increasingly more popular as a site for renewable energy research. In 2007 the area received a wind powered plant as well.