Ampol, Biotech join for ethanol project

Press, 30 August 1979, Page 18

Ampol, Biotech join for ethanol project

NZPA Sydney An agreement which could enable Australia to achieve world leadership in commercial alcohol fuel production technology, has been concluded by Ampol Petroleum, Ltd, and Biotechnology Australia Pty, Ltd. The agreement will lead to the construction of Australia’s first continuous fermentation alcohol fuel plant. A pilot plant, to be built in Sydney within 12 months, will have an annual capacity of 2,500,000 litres of ethanol, which will be produced from grain feedstock. Grains have the major advantages over other suggested feedstocks in that they are readily available, and are already grown in large quantities in New South Wales and all other states.

The continuous fermentation process being developed by the Ampol-Biotech consortium can be adapted to use cane juice, molasses, and sugar beet as a feedstock.

Ethanol can be blended for use in existing engines without any need for expensive engine modifications, or pressurised storage tanks.

Ethanol is seen as a replacement for part of Australia’s gasoline needs. It can be blended to “stretch” petrol supplies by up to 20 per cent, Most of the world’s ethanol is produced by the “batch” method, which is less efficient and therefore, unsuitable for the need of fuel-hungry consumers. Biotechnology Australia is an Australian company, which was formed in 1977 by Dr David MacLennan, a

world leader in the field of continuous fermentation.

The company is already operating a 1000 tonne per annum capacity continuous yeast fermentation pilot plant, the technology of which is readily adaptable to ethanol production. This research has been strongly supported by the Australian Industrial Research and Development Incentives Board, the Commonwealth Department of Productivity, and Tooheys, Ltd, brewery'. The New South Wales Minister for Energy (Mr Hills) welcomed the decision to go ahead with the pilot plant, and said that the state Government, and the Energy Authority of N.S.W., would provide every encouragement to the project.