Vega Biofuels, Inc.
Worldwide Demand for our Products
As Global cross border trade rules have been relaxed or eliminated, many companies around the world have increased their production levels to meet the growing demand of their products. This has caused a significant increase in the demand for energy and the fuels that produce that energy. This increase in the production of energy has also caused an increase in pollution emissions that far surpass acceptable world policy levels and caused various governments to implement mandates for power generating companies to include alternative sources in their power generating. Manufacturing plants and municipal governments at all levels have started looking for alternate sources of fuel that are more efficient, cost effective, and have lower, more acceptable emissions. Our Bio-coal product is a perfect solution to meet these needs.
The addition of our Biochar product in soil significantly increases the yield for growers in all parts of the agricultural industry. With the booming expansion of the legal hemp and marijuana industries, we are focusing a significant amount of time, energy, and resources to meet this demand.
What we do and where we're going
Manufacturing plants and municipal governments at all levels have started looking for alternate sources of fuel that are more efficient, cost effective, and have lower, more acceptable emissionsRead More
The addition of our Biochar product in soil significantly increases the yield for growers in all parts of the agricultural industry.Read More
Vega Biofuels will be participating in both The BIG Industry Show and The 2014 Cannabis Cup in Denver Colorado to discuss the benefits of Biochar in the production of medical marijuana.Read More
Bio-coal is produced using technology called torrefaction. Torrefaction is a partial carbonization process at temperatures between 475 – 575°F (200 – 400°C) in a low oxygen environment. The physical and energetic properties of the biomass are then much more comparable to conventional coal. Once the biomass goes through the torrefaction process, a bonding agent is added so it can be compressed into very dense briquettes called Bio-coal. The torrefaction process has the added benefit of reducing or eliminating undesirable volatiles, such as nitrous oxides and sulfur dioxides in the Bio-coal. Bio-coal is considered carbon neutral to the environment. The key property that makes Bio-coal attractive for co-firing in existing coal-fired power stations is its superior grind ability compared to untreated or fresh biomass. After torrefaction, biomass has lost its tenacious nature and some of its fibrous structure.
Benefits of Bio-Coal:
• Bio-coal is comparable in price to conventional coal.
• Bio-coal is made from renewable sources. Oil and coal cannot be replaced.
• Bio-coal contains no sulfur. Oil and coal have high sulfur content and when burned, pollute the environment.
• Bio-coal has a higher practical thermal value and much lower ash content compared to conventional coal.
• There is no fly ash when burning Bio-coal.
• Bio-coal has consistent quality, higher burning efficiency, and is the ideal size for complete combustion.
• Combustion from Bio-coal is more uniform compared to conventional coal and boiler response to changes in steam requirements is faster with Bio-coal due to the higher quantity of volatile matter.
• Bio-coal is easy to store and hygienic to handle.
Process Energy Balance of Bio-Coal:
During the torrefaction process approximately 70% of the mass is retained as a solid product containing 90% of the initial energy content. The remaining 30% of the mass is converted into torrefaction gases, but contains only 10% of the energy content of the biomass. Hence, considerable energy density can be achieved, typically by a factor of 1.3 on a mass basis. This is one of the fundamental advantages of the torrefaction process, which is the high transition of the chemical energy from the timber waste to the final Bio-coal product, thus improving its fuel properties. The torrefaction gasses are then used for drying additional raw biomass before it enters the plant.
What is Biomass?
Biomass is material derived from recently living organisms. This includes plants, animals and their by-products. For example, timber waste, manure, garden waste, and crop residues are all sources of biomass.
Biomass is a renewable energy source based on the carbon cycle, unlike other natural resources such as petroleum, coal, and nuclear fuels.
Bio-coal is made primarily from timber waste, a bi-product from saw mills, lumber yards, and agricultural waste after harvest. Millions of metric tons of saw dust is produced by sawmills and lumber yards when producing wood. Approximately eighty percent of the saw dust cannot be used in products such as roof shingles and wood panels because the saw dust is too fine or not the right fiber content. This green-energy waste product can be used in the manufacturing of Bio-coal, using the torrefaction process.
Biochar is a highly absorbent specially designed charcoal-type product primarily used as a soil enhancement for the agricultural industry to significantly increase crop yields. Biochar offers a powerfully simple solution to some of today’s most urgent environmental concerns. The production of Biochar for carbon sequestration in the soil is a carbon-negative process.
Biochar has been used for thousands of years. Early civilizations would chop plant materials then ignite and bury them in the earth and allow them to smolder, which eventually produced a char material commonly referred to as Biochar. This process isolated most of the carbon in the vegetation, creating a particularly hospitable amendment, which in turn nurtured beneficial micro-organisms that transformed the degraded soil to extremely rich and stable humus.
Today, Biochar is produced by pyrolysis, a process in which biomass is heated in an oxygen-deprived environment to break it down into simpler substances.
Biochar produced and marketed by Vega has been certified by the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI), a national nonprofit organization that determines which input products are allowed for use in organic production and processing, based upon the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) standards. OMRI listed or approved products may be used on operations that are certified organic under the USDA National Organic Program.
For plants that require high potash and elevated pH, Biochar can be used as a soil amendment to significantly improve yield. Biochar can improve water quality, reduce soil emissions of greenhouse gases, reduce nutrient leaching, reduce soil acidity, and reduce irrigation and fertilizer requirements. Biochar was also found under certain circumstances to induce plant systemic responses to foliar fungal diseases and to improve plant responses to diseases caused by soil-borne pathogens.
The various impacts of Biochar can be dependent on the properties of the Biochar, as well as the amount applied. Biochar impact may depend on regional conditions including soil type, soil condition (depleted or healthy), temperature, and humidity. Modest additions of Biochar to soil reduces nitrous oxide N2O emissions by up to 80% and eliminates methane emissions, which are both more potent greenhouse gases than CO2.
Pollutants such as metals and pesticides seep into soil and contaminate food supplies, reducing the amount of land suitable for agricultural production. Studies have reported positive effects from Biochar on crop production in degraded and nutrient–poor soils. Biochar can be designed with specific qualities to target distinct properties of soils. Biochar reduces leaching of critical nutrients, creates a higher crop uptake of nutrients, and provides greater soil availability of nutrients. At 10% levels Biochar reduced contaminant levels in plants by up to 80%, while reducing total chlordane and DDX content in the plants by 68 and 79%, respectively.
Environmental Benefits of Biochar:
The burning and natural decomposition of biomass and in particular agricultural waste adds large amounts of CO2 to the atmosphere. Biochar that is stable, fixed, and ‘recalcitrant’ carbon can store large amounts of greenhouse gases in the ground for centuries, potentially reducing or stalling the growth in atmospheric greenhouse gas levels; at the same time its presence in the earth can improve water quality, increase soil fertility, raise agricultural productivity, and reduce pressure on old-growth forests.
Biochar can sequester carbon in the soil for hundreds to thousands of years, like coal. Such a carbon-negative technology would lead to a net withdrawal of CO2 from the atmosphere, while producing and consuming energy.
Researchers have estimated that sustainable use of biocharring could reduce the global net emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane, and nitrous oxide by up to 1.8 Pg CO2-C equivalent (CO2-Ce) per year (12% of current anthropogenic CO2-Ce emissions; 1 Pg=1 Gt), and total net emissions over the course of the next century by 130 Pg CO2-Ce, without endangering food security, habitat, or soil conservation.
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Strong corporate governance starts with a Board of Directors that is independent, engaged, committed, and effective.
Our Board establishes, maintains, and monitors standards and policies for ethics, business practices, and compliance that span the company.
We set strategic business objectives, ensure that the Company has leadership that is dynamic and responsive, track performance, and institute strong financial controls.
We believe in strengthening investor confidence and creating long-term shareholder value so we can continue to build our business and implement our Business Plan.
Sector: Alternative Energy
State incorporated: Wyoming
Incorporation date: 1986
Exchange: OTC PK
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