GEORGETOWN, SC–(Marketwire – May 12, 2010) – Renewed World Energies, Inc., a majority owned subsidiary of Aventura Equities, Inc. (PINKSHEETS: AVNE) announced that BioEcoTek-Hawaii selected Renewed World Energies, Inc.’s (“RWE”) bioreactor for an innovative pilot demonstration utilizing wastewater at a sewage treatment plant located in Oahu, Hawaii. This project possesses the promise to make wastewater treatment facilities net positive energy producers while reducing greenhouse gases.
John P. Venners, President of BioEcoTek-Hawaii, said, “After an extensive search for a robust, cost efficient photo bioreactor system we chose RWE’s system. It is clear to us that this self contained system offers us maximum flexibility and reliability to conduct the necessary tests prior to full scale commercialization. We were also impressed with RWE’s experienced management team and their thorough understanding of the business opportunities in algae.”
“We are excited about BioEcoTek’s selection of our bioreactor for their innovative project,” stated Rick Armstrong, Chief Executive Officer of Aventura Equities (PINKSHEETS: AVNE), the majority owner of RWE.
Well, I made it out to the Tax Day Tea Party at the South Carolina Statehouse. Overall, it was much smaller than last years Tea Party event. Don’t know what to make of that. Could be that people attended more local events instead of driving to Columbia or it could be that there really weren’t a lot of big name speakers at the event other than Gov. Sanford (and while he did get applause, there were one to two hecklers in the crowd that were telling him to step down). Or, possibly, people are just tired of protesting since Washington seems to just do whatever they want anyways (see Health Care Reform).
Anyways, here are some pictures from the event including some interesting signage. One thing I did find interesting was that at one point during Sanford’s speech, a police officer came up to where I was standing on the Statehouse steps and use binoculars to scan the crowd for a while. There is a pictures of that in there as well.
Aventura Equities, Inc. (PINKSHEETS: AVNE) has agreed to acquire a majority interest in Renewed World Energies, Inc. of Georgetown, South Carolina, thereby shifting its focus to the alternative energy sector in a very significant corporate move.
Renewed World Energies, Inc. (“RWE”) is launching the world’s first commercially-viable, closed system, automated microalgae production facility. RWE’s efforts are pioneering a new era of mass adoption of bio-fuel. Over the past six years, Tim Tompkins and Richard Armstrong, RWE’s principals, have developed a scalable closed system bioreactor that not only grows algae but will make RWE the low cost vertically integrated harvester and extractor of oil from microalgae, as well. RWE’s proprietary process has been engineered to utilize carbon via Flue Gas or bottled CO2 but foster a new approach to reducing industrial greenhouse gas emissions by capturing such emissions as an input to its bio-reactor.
In the short term, RWE’s mission is to be the leader in the manufacturing and sale of algae oil and a lead supplier of products and services associated with such manufacturing and sales. As evidence, RWE has recently announced a Joint Venture project with Bio-Centric Energy Holdings, Inc. RWE intends to begin offering algae products that range from algae cake for livestock feed to raw materials for use in the pharmaceutical, natural food and cosmetics industries. Longer term, RWE intends to continue its research related to the discovery of many other profitable and viable uses of RWE’s core technology, including the cost effective production of commercial quantities of “green fuel.”
For more on Renewed World Energies’ bioreactor technology, check out this press release.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff has approved a license amendment request from Duke Energy Carolinas to install an up-to-date computer upgrade of major safety-related systems at the Oconee Nuclear Station, located eight miles north of Seneca on Lake Keowee.
The amended Oconee license gives Duke permission to replace 1970s-era analog, solid-state controls for the plant’s Reactor Protection System (RPS) and Engineered Safeguard Protection System (ESPS). Duke will install Teleperm XS (TXS) digital computer-based equipment, according to a release from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
(…)
The NRC staff approved the Oconee amendment after confirming the new system’s ability to meet both safety requirements and NRC cyber-security regulations that isolate the systems and prevent cyber attacks. The staff paid particular attention to the system’s ability to maintain two-way communications between various subsystems and provide diverse control pathways for safety-related commands, as well as the tools used to simulate and validate the system’s performance. NRC staff also inspected Duke’s procedures for the Oconee-specific TXS design and implementation and observed testing of the actual system at production facilities in Germany.
This marks the first NRC approval for a nuclear power plant’s integrated digital RPS and ESPS instrumentation and control system. The agency had previously approved single safety-related digital control applications, such as for the main steam and feed-water isolation system at the Wolf Creek nuclear plant in Kansas.
A couple fun facts about the Oconee station courtesy of Gwyneth Cravens’ book, “Power to Save the World”
Started producing power in 1973
By 1981, the plant had paid for its start up costs
Only nuclear power plant in the country with a hydroelectric backup
That’s where a company like Renewed World Energies (RWE) comes in. RWE has not only tapped algae, it has gone further to create a practical method of channeling carbon pollution to grow algae. While other companies are solely focusing on energy alternatives, RWE is looking at how algae can shape multiple industries at multiple levels. Richard Armstrong and Tim Tompkins founded the company just over a year ago but began designing a system six years prior. Today, RWE has the first commercially viable, closed system and automated microalgae production facility known to date. The South Carolina-based company’s target is a new era of mass adoption of biofuel. In addition to capturing nitrogen oxides and carbon dioxide from flue gas (bulk compressed CO2 can also be used) emitted from the power generation industry and any CO2 emitting industrial plants, the system asserts to be able to grow and harvest the microalgae. The harvested algae can be used as is or it can be further processed into other products. Should the system deliver as projected, its use by industrial companies could assist in reducing their carbon footprints and provide a useable alternative energy source.
The diversity contained in algae’s properties makes it one of the most distinctive and soon to be coveted plants for its extensive range of applications. RWE’s system yields two usable forms of algae: oil and cake. The oil and the cake produced from the numerous strains currently utilized by the company will be used in everything from pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals and cosmetics, organic feed, organic fertilizer, and used as a feed for the aquaculture industry. RWE also hopes to provide oil on a commercial level for JP-8 jet propellant diesel fuel. In this sense, RWE will serve as a source and not the actual processor. The result is cleaner air, high quality, commercially valuable algae biomass, a highly nutritious feedstock source and clean energy alternatives.
Algae companies are popping up all over, so who will be the first to the finish? Better-known competitors have forecasted that they are still three to five years out, while RWE is on the forefront of research and development, and the fast track to capturing the market. RWE’s system technology edges out competitors as it is the only fully automated and modular photo-bioreactor currently available.
Arguably, algae is the most sustainable energy alternative with life-sustaining and viable applications that enhance a variety of aspects of our well-being. Renewed World Energies’ ability to create a tangible mass producer of algae oil stands at the gateway to a functional form of algae-based fuel and virtually endless uses of biomass.
I will be sure to follow RWE closely and keep you updated as things progress.
Today, a Tea Party rally took place at the South Carolina Statehouse in Columbia, South Carolina. Senator Jim DeMint and Mark Sanford made statements. I was able to get the last half of Sen. DeMint’s speech:
Also, here is Governor Sanford’s speech:
In addition to that, here are some pictures from the rally:
The Crowd
Senator Jim DeMint
Governor Mark Sanford
This guy was plain awesome.
And my personal favorite…
If you want larger prints of the above photos, click this link.
Also, here is a slide show that include the above photos as well as some others:
This article, which haphazardly throws algae into a long list of other biofuel producing crops, highlights that algae is at least on South Carolina’s radar of crops that could be grown in the state. This is good because because, as I have highlighted before, algae is the best biofuel crop out there. Anyways, here is what the article has to say about the pilot plant:
Well, that’s just what the Clemson University Restoration Institute and the Savannah River National Laboratory are hoping to figure out with their proposed $14 million pilot plant at the Clemson Restoration Institute in North Charleston.
Once funding is secured, the plant would take about 12 months to build.
The facility would give researchers a central place to advance the viability of using South Carolina’s best crops to make biofuel. Among those items being studied: Switchgrass, sweet sorghum, and pine, and even algae would fall into the mix.
South Carolina’s General Assembly is having an emergency session to dea with the budget shortfall. The cuts have been proposed in House Bill 5300 and as of right now, there are 11 amendments that have been proposed. These amendments will be debated today which means that it could be a long.
-
On an interesting note, 7 of those amendments have been proposed by James Smith.
-
UPDATE
Amendment #4 proposes that Suth Carolina only spend based on the previous year’s collection. The House voted 59-49 to table the amendment to later debate.
-
UPDATE 2
Amendment #8 proposes that South Carolina affix a stamp to cigarettes that help to track the collections of cigarette taxes (doesn’t raise the tax). The House voted 68-39 to table the amendment.
-
UPDATE 3
Amendment #9 proposes the identical cigarette tax increase that was passed by the House and Senate but vetoed by the Gov. Sanford this past spring. This tax increase will supposedly cover roughly 1/3 of the budget shortfall. Voice vote tabled the amendment.
-
UPDATE 4
Amendment #10 proposes that if state agencies have to lay off employees, the state has to re-employ these members if the economy rebounds. Amendment was tabled because there is a law like this already on the books.
-
UPDATE 5
Amendment #11 proposes that the nonprofit Protection and Advocacy for the Handicapped, which got a 100% funding cut, get roughly a 14% cut instead which leaves roughly $249,000 for funding. The House voted 66-50 to table the amendment.
-
UPDATE 6
Amendment #13 proposes that the cuts for the Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities be lowered to 3.6% since these schools receive no local funding. House voted to table the amendment 80-31.
-
UPDATE 7
Amendment #17 proposes to transfer $1,000,000 to the Department of Health and Environmental Control for HIV Prevention from the Department of Health and Human Services. Voice vote tabled the amendment.
-
UPDATE 8
I’m heading to class for a bit but I should be back up there a little later to give more coverage.
-
UPDATE 9
Well it seems that the House passed the Budget Cut Bill overwhelmingly with only one amendment addressing some number errors.
Last night I attended a debate between former DNC Chairman Don Fowler and current RNC Committeeman Glenn McCall. This event was advertised as a “post presidential debate debate” and mainly consisted of a moderator asking each representative to pick apart the presidential candidate’s statements from the third and final debate.
Overall, I thought the debate was well done. Both Fowler and McCall actually answered the questions and the moderator actually asked good follow up questions along with making sure each participant answered the original question.
The following is the debate in whole in chronological order, which I broke it into eight parts with each part dealing with a certain topic/question. It might be good to watch the first video just so you know the set up and the introductions, otherwise you can jump around from video to video. Just to let you know who is who, Don Fowler is located on the right and Glenn McCall is located on the left of the moderator.
First topic, after the introductions were made, was their thoughts on the Bailout.
Next, the moderator asked about ‘Joe the Plumber’ who’s name each candidate invoked during the debate.
Following that, each participant spoke about the idea of allowing the President line item veto power.
Next they discussed energy policy and in particular offshore oil drilling and nuclear. (Both Fowler and McCall are pro-nuclear).
They each discussed the idea of negative campaigning in this election and how it compared to past elections.
Next they discussed fair trade policy.
Education was tackled next with Glenn McCall giving some interesting insight into the problem.
The last topic discussed was Health Care, with each participant articulating what exactly the healthcare industry will look like under their respected candidates.
South Carolina State Representatives Nathan Ballentine, Jeff Duncan, and Nikki Haley all received stellar marks (A’s and A+’s) on this year’s South Carolina Club for Growth Scorecard. Not only are these three legislators excellent examples of fiscal conservatives, but they also have helped me out a lot with my other website, SC Statehouse Blog. Thanks again for all your help and keep up the good work. We are going to need some strong fiscal conservatives while the General Assembly discusses the South Carolina’s budget cuts.
