What’s it all About, Algae?

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Thursday, 23 July 2009 16:48

San Diego, California, July 2009 – Greener Dawn Research, specializing in clean tech equity research, has published its first institutional report on algae based biofuels. The report examines the opportunities and challenges of the nascent industry, and features insight on the eight major algae-to-fuel companies nearing commercialization. The eight profiled companies include Algenol, Aurora, Livefuels, PetroAlgae (PALG.OB), Sapphire, Seambiotic, Solix, and Solazyme. The report addresses the key question - "Can algae based biofuels compete as a substitute to fossil fuel based crude oil?" Algae are aquatic plant-like organisms that can grow much faster than any other crops or plants. In addition, algae can grow on marginal, non-arable land, leaving quality farm land available for food production. These two factors help algae biofuel avoid the bitter food versus fuel debate. "To grow enough corn to produce a sufficient amount of ethanol to replace petroleum, the U.S. would need to plant corn on roughly one-third the total land area of the country. To grow enough soy to generate sufficient biodiesel, the U.S. would need to plant more than the entire land area of this country," said George Santana, Greener Dawn Director of Research. "Algae biofuel would require the land area of just Wisconsin to replace petroleum. Due to increased productivity, algae based fuel has the potential to be a revolutionary breakthrough." With cap and trade, carbon taxes, and the World Climate Summit in Copenhagen in December 2009 as issues at the forefront of the current administration, algae may offer a new tool in the fight against carbon dioxide production, the primary contributor to climate change. Studies show algae consume 2.2 times its weight in carbon dioxide while burning fossil fuels produce carbon dioxide. Placing algae farms next to coal plants is being looked at as a viable option. Greener Dawn was founded on the belief that we are in the very early stages of a transformation to a more energy efficient, lower-carbon global economy. We are equity analysts focused on the renewable energy and clean technology sectors, publishing research for our institutional investor subscribers. Greener Dawn Inc. focuses on energy and water efficiency, LEED consulting, energy audits, and carbon strategies for Residential and Commercial real estate. They focus on the holistic approach to making an asset more sustainable by lower operating expenses, creating green collar jobs, and reducing the carbon footprint. Homeowners, municipalities, asset managers, and building owners are their clients. SOURCE: Greener Dawn Research < Prev   Next >