"The data and operating experience cultivated at this pre-commercial scale facility has conclusively demonstrated that the Coskata technology is ready for commercial production today," said Coskata President and CEO Bill Roe. "With an industry leading yield of more than 100 gal of ethanol coming from a dry ton of wood biomass, we look forward to working with industry partners to rapidly deploy this leading conversion technology and help the country meet the Renewable Fuels Standard."
The integrated biorefinery, which utilizes plasma gasification technology provided by Westinghouse Plasma Corp., was built to demonstrate the commercial readiness of the Coskata technology. It is the largest scale facility that has utilized syngas fermentation into ethanol technology.
The technology proven at the Pennsylvania facility will be used at the company's first commercial-scale facility in Alabama, of which Coskata was awarded a conditional commitment for a loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Coskata's technology enables the production of biofuels and chemicals, from virtually any carbonaceous material, using anaerobic microorganisms and innovative bioreactor designs. The process combines the flexibility of gasification with the efficiency of biological conversion of syngas into fuels or chemicals.
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