Volkswagen eyes Iogen's straw ethanol technology
OTTAWA—A small Canadian company with revolutionary technology for making ethanol from straw is under growing pressure to build its first plant abroad.
Iogen Corp. is a world leader in making cellulose ethanol from waste residues of agriculture, rather than from edible wheat and corn. The ethanol can then be used as a fuel for vehicles.
Cellulose ethanol is environmentally far superior to conventional ethanol because its production does not require the fuel and chemicals involved in grain farming. Instead, the raw material is waste.
On the weekend, Volkswagen announced it would participate in a feasibility study on building a plant based on the Iogen process in Germany.
Iogen vice-president Jeff Passmore said yesterday it was the first time to his knowledge that a vehicle manufacturer has considered becoming involved in fuel production.
He said Volkswagen's interest stems from tough European Union objectives for reducing greenhouse emissions from transportation to comply with the Kyoto protocol.
"This is a signal that you need to take an integrated approach. In the past, people have looked at the fuels and the vehicles in separate silos."
Canada has no regulations on greenhouse emissions from vehicles, nor are any planned. The government is relying on a voluntary commitment by manufacturers to curb emissions.
Passmore said Iogen was in discussions with Industry Canada about building a plant in Canada before the election, and the company was close to selecting candidate sites in Saskatchewan and Alberta.
The Star.
Iogen Corp. is a world leader in making cellulose ethanol from waste residues of agriculture, rather than from edible wheat and corn. The ethanol can then be used as a fuel for vehicles.
Cellulose ethanol is environmentally far superior to conventional ethanol because its production does not require the fuel and chemicals involved in grain farming. Instead, the raw material is waste.
On the weekend, Volkswagen announced it would participate in a feasibility study on building a plant based on the Iogen process in Germany.
Iogen vice-president Jeff Passmore said yesterday it was the first time to his knowledge that a vehicle manufacturer has considered becoming involved in fuel production.
He said Volkswagen's interest stems from tough European Union objectives for reducing greenhouse emissions from transportation to comply with the Kyoto protocol.
"This is a signal that you need to take an integrated approach. In the past, people have looked at the fuels and the vehicles in separate silos."
Canada has no regulations on greenhouse emissions from vehicles, nor are any planned. The government is relying on a voluntary commitment by manufacturers to curb emissions.
Passmore said Iogen was in discussions with Industry Canada about building a plant in Canada before the election, and the company was close to selecting candidate sites in Saskatchewan and Alberta.
The Star.
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