Sirona News

Sirona Fuels Launches Jatropha Community Farming in Haiti

Tue, 28 Apr 2009 00:00:00 -0700

San Francisco, CA – April 27, 2009
Sirona Fuels, an emerging leader in alternative fuels, announced today that it has begun Jatropha planting operations in Haiti over the past month in a joint venture with 3C Missions, an organization that has established a relief fund for over 1,100 orphaned children in Haiti. Sirona intends to harvest and crush the Jatropha in Haiti, and refine it into a high-quality B100 Biodiesel in the United States. Sirona's nursery operations include planting multiple strains of seeds and seedlings that will be intercropped with Moringa trees. Moringa leaves are high in protein and nutrients and can be simply processed into a micronutrient powder to fight malnutrition.

“Planting our first Jatropha in Haiti is an important milestone for us and for our Haitian partners.” Said Paul Lacourciere, Sirona's CEO. "This represents a critical step in changing the lives of the farmers in Haiti while creating the opportunity for us to deliver high-quality biodiesel that aids in lowering American’s carbon emissions. Additionally, Sirona has also partnered with Haitian farmers that have dedicated land to planting Jatropha, but have not been able to get their product to market.”

In an effort to spark economy in the region, Sirona will not take ownership of the Haitian Jatropha farms, but rather form a partnership by providing the equipment, seeds, seedlings and technical advice necessary to grow commercially viable Jatropha. The Sirona Cares foundation is also ramping up its activities in the communities in which the Sirona Fuels community farms are located. Among other activities it is distributing medical supplies and mosquito nets to assist communities that are trying to rebuild after last year's devastating hurricanes.

By working with sustainable and affordable feedstocks like used cooking oil and jatropha, Sirona’s business model is designed to stabilize fuel prices for its customers, provide sustainable revenue to its suppliers and make significant volumes of high-quality biodiesel available to the market. Sirona has identified commercial sources for jatropha in several countries and is developing businesses that will promote the establishment of jatropha farms in Haiti, India and other developing countries.

For further information, please visit www.sironafuels.com

About Sirona Fuels
Sirona Fuels is headquartered in San Francisco, CA with refinery operations in Oakland, CA. Sirona addresses the unmet needs of diverse constituencies in the biodiesel ecosystem to help close the streams of waste and reduce the impacts that energy needs create. The company currently produces a low-carbon, ASTM-spec biodiesel from its used cooking oil collection and refining business and is expanding its feedstock intake to include jatropha. The company’s production model revolves around sustainable feedstocks that in-turn provide an affordable, environmentally friendly alternative to petroleum diesel. Sirona is a proud supporter of the local and international communities and businesses that help provide the company with its feedstock. For more information please visit www.sironafuels.com

Sirona Fuels Acquires Blue Sky Biofuels and Invests in Jatropha to Expand Production of High-Quality Biofuel

Mon, 02 Feb 2009 00:00:00 -0800

Company Challenges the Alternative Fuel Industry with Innovative Business Model, Visionary Leadership and Community Partnerships

San Francisco, CA – February 2, 2009 –Sirona Fuels, a company focused on overcoming the speculative nature of the supply and demand sides of the alternative fuels business, officially entered the biodiesel marketplace and announced its plans for expansion at the National Biodiesel Conference & Expo in San Francisco today. Through its purchase of Blue Sky Biofuels, Sirona has acquired a refinery that produces high-quality biodiesel from both virgin and non-virgin feedstocks. The Oakland, CA-based refinery is permitted for 15 million gallons a year and is currently producing high-quality, ASTM-spec biodiesel from recycled cooking oil.

Sirona has implemented plans for the rapid expansion of its used cooking oil collection business, and by the end of 2009 expects to produce the majority of its biodiesel from jatropha, an oil-yielding plant that grows on non-arable land and is not part of the food chain. The company has identified commercial sources for jatropha in several countries and is developing businesses that will promote the establishment of jatropha farms in Haiti, India and other developing countries.

By working with sustainable and affordable feedstocks like used cooking oil and jatropha, Sirona’s business model is designed to stabilize fuel prices for its customers, provide sustainable revenue to its suppliers and make significant volumes of high-quality biodiesel available to the market. Paul Lacourciere, CEO of Sirona Fuels, has a 20 year history in the energy industry. Over the last ten years as an attorney he has structured and negotiated transactions with the some of the largest energy companies in the world.

“There is no better way for a company to go green or get ahead of rising oil prices and upcoming low-carbon fuel standards than with a fixed-price, high-quality biodiesel like Sirona offers,” said Lacourciere. “Sirona’s biodiesel exceeds ASTM standards and has among the highest quality of any biofuel in America. We plan to grow the company exponentially by acquiring more refineries and aggressively expanding our local and international feedstock supplies.

A Different Kind of Fuel Company
Sirona Fuels is committed to making a positive difference in the communities it operates in, both domestically and abroad. Sirona currently contributes to local communities by providing subsidized biodiesel for school buses. The company is also providing businesses and institutions with the ability to have Sirona donate money to local schools when they recycle their cooking oil with Sirona Fuels.

Internationally, Sirona is establishing affiliates and partnerships in developing countries to inject money into those countries’ economies, stimulating commerce and creating an avenue to reinvest profits into those countries' infrastructure. This includes empowering rural farmers to lift their living standards and environment through productive enterprise. In its effort to procure jatropha in Haiti, Sirona has partnered with C3 Missions International, an organization that has established a relief fund for over 1,100 orphaned children in Haiti.

Visit Sirona and its executive team at the National Biodiesel Conference & Expo, booth 200 & 220, February 2-4 at Moscone Center West in San Francisco, CA.

About Sirona
Sirona Fuels is headquartered in San Francisco, CA with refinery operations in Oakland, CA. Sirona addresses the unmet needs of diverse constituencies in the biodiesel ecosystem to help close the streams of waste and reduce the impacts that energy needs create. The company currently produces a low-carbon, ASTM-spec biodiesel from its used cooking oil collection and refining business and is expanding its feedstock intake to include jatropha in Q1 2009. The company’s production model revolves around sustainable feedstocks that in-turn provide an affordable, environmentally friendly alternative to petroleum diesel. Sirona is a proud supporter of the local and international communities and businesses that help provide the company with its feedstock. For more information please visit www.sironafuels.com.

Media Contact:

John O'Brien

Horn Group, Inc.

jobrien@horngroup.com

415.905.4006

Sirona Fuels' B100 Jatropha Oil Among Highest Quality Ever Tested

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Sirona Fuels' B100 Jatropha Oil Among Highest Quality Ever Tested Biodiesel glycerin levels nearly five times lower than ASTM limit

San Francisco, CA – April 1, 2009

Sirona Fuels, an emerging leader in alternative fuels, announced today that a Sirona batch of B100 fuel refined from jatropha oil has tested among the very highest quality biodiesel fuels in the nation and set numerous historic precedents for the state of California. CytoCulture International Inc., the environmental biotechnology firm that conducted the tests, reported that Sirona's Total Free and Bound Glycerin concentration was measured at 0.052%, nearly 5 times lower than the ASTM maximum limit of 0.24%. These results are also 3 times lower than the national average concentration of total glycerin (ca. 0.15%) reported by the 2007 survey of 56 samples of B100 from production plants in the US (National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO; Dr. Robert McCormick, et. al, March 2008).

"Sirona's biodiesel set numerous quality records for our laboratory," said Randall von Wedel, Principle Biochemist for CytoCulture. "The Total Acid Number, the Cold Soak Filterability particulate count and KF Water concentration are the lowest values ever reported for a B100 sample tested at CytoCulture."

"As part of our rapid expansion program, we put a premium on producing the highest-quality biodiesel for our current and future customers," said Paul Lacourciere, CEO of Sirona Fuels. "The advantage for Sirona customers is that our biodiesel quality results from our batch process rather than expensive machinery, so we can afford to keep our costs very competitive."

The quality of biofuel is important to measure, as low-quality biofuels can have adverse effects that result in freezing, engine damage, lower miles-to-the-gallon and higher carbon output, among others. Sirona has invested heavily in producing the highest-quality biodiesel from both virgin and non-virgin feedstocks such as jatropha and used-cooking-oil (UCO) respectively. Jatropha is an oil-yielding plant that grows on non-arable land and is not part of the food chain. Sirona is currently developing "farm to fuel" protocols for the handling of Jatropha nuts, oil and fuel to address all safety issues related to jatropha's various effects on humans that include skin irritation or sickness if ingested.

For further information, please visit www.sironafuels.com or meet Sirona Fuels CEO Paul Lacourciere as he presents at the Dow Jones VenturWire Alternative Energy Innovations Conference, April 21 & 22, 2009 at The Sofitel in Redwood City, CA.

About Sirona Fuels Sirona Fuels is headquartered in San Francisco, CA with refinery operations in Oakland, CA. Sirona addresses the unmet needs of diverse constituencies in the biodiesel ecosystem to help close the streams of waste and reduce the impacts that energy needs create. The company currently produces a low-carbon, ASTM-spec biodiesel from its used cooking oil collection and refining business and is expanding its feedstock intake to include jatropha. The company's production model revolves around sustainable feedstocks that in-turn provide an affordable, environmentally friendly alternative to petroleum diesel. Sirona is a proud supporter of the local and international communities and businesses that help provide the company with its feedstock. For more information please visit www.sironafuels.com.

Sirona Fuels Partnering With The Renewable Energy in Emerging Markets Conference 2009

Thu, 09 Apr 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Working Biodiesel Refinery Site Visits Offered to Conference Attendees

San Francisco, CA - April 9, 2009 - Sirona Fuels, an emerging leader in alternative fuels, announced today that it is partnering with the Renewable Energy in the Emerging Markets (REEM) conference in San Francisco on April 27-29, 2009. The REEM conference will focus on introducing all methods of renewable energy technologies to leaders and political figures in the emerging markets of Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean, as well as creating an unparalleled networking opportunity between the US and these overseas markets. Sirona Fuels will be attending and displaying at the event in addition to sponsoring site visits of its working Biodiesel refinery in Oakland, CA on the conference's first day. Conference attendees will have the opportunity to tour the plant and learn about Sirona's development of protocols for the processing of crude Jatropha oil into "beyond ASTM" B100 biodiesel. Sirona recently became the first working refinery in California to process the drought and pest tolerant feedstock into quality fuel.

"We look forward to welcoming those interested in the use of sustainable feedstocks like jatropha and used cooking oil that are affordable and do not compete with food production." said Paul Lacourciere, CEO of Sirona Fuels. "Jatropha farming generates economic activity in regions where enterprise is greatly needed and the end-result for Sirona customers is an extremely high quality, low carbon fuel."

By working with sustainable and affordable feedstocks like used cooking oil and jatropha, Sirona's business model is designed to stabilize fuel prices for its customers, provide sustainable revenue to its suppliers and make significant volumes of high-quality biodiesel available to the market. Sirona has identified commercial sources for jatropha in several countries and is developing businesses that will promote the establishment of jatropha farms in Haiti, India and other developing countries.

True to the company's mission of building sustainable fuel and sustainable lives, Sirona is establishing affiliates and partnerships in developing countries to inject money into those countries' economies; stimulating commerce and creating an avenue to reinvest profits into those countries' infrastructure. This includes empowering rural farmers to lift their living standards and environment through productive enterprise. In its effort to procure jatropha in Haiti, Sirona has partnered with C3 Missions International, an organization that has established a relief fund for over 1,100 orphaned children in Haiti.

For further information, please visit www.sironafuels.com or meet Sirona Fuels CEO Paul Lacourciere as he presents at the Dow Jones VenturWire Alternative Energy Innovations Conference, April 21 & 22, 2009 at The Sofitel in Redwood City, CA.

About Sirona Fuels
Sirona Fuels is headquartered in San Francisco, CA with refinery operations in Oakland, CA. Sirona addresses the unmet needs of diverse constituencies in the biodiesel ecosystem to help close the streams of waste and reduce the impacts that energy needs create. The company currently produces a low-carbon, ASTM-spec biodiesel from its used cooking oil collection and refining business and is expanding its feedstock intake to include jatropha. The company's production model revolves around sustainable feedstocks that in-turn provide an affordable, environmentally friendly alternative to petroleum diesel. Sirona is a proud supporter of the local and international communities and businesses that help provide the company with its feedstock. For more information please visit www.sironafuels.com.

Sirona Fuels and Sirona Cares Launch Sirona Cares for Schools

Mon, 21 Jun 2010 00:00:00 -0700

San Francisco, CA – June 21, 2010 – Sirona Fuels, owner of the Blue Sky Bio-Fuels biodiesel refinery in Oakland, and the Sirona Cares Foundation, a San Francisco-based non-profit, have launched the Sirona Cares for Schools program. This program invites local restaurants to donate used cooking oil for biodiesel production. The oil donated to Sirona Cares will be recycled into biodiesel and 20% of sale price for the resulting biodiesel will be donated to local schools and other eligible organizations that support children. One of the founding principles of Sirona Fuels is to give back to the community; with the launch of Sirona Cares for Schools other businesses can take part as well.

Sirona Fuels sees the Bay Area as a champion of progressive and innovative business ideas, and sees the future landscape as one where businesses must take a triple bottom-line approach, accounting for economic viability as well as social and environmental impacts.

“Sirona Fuels is very proud to be part of this program. It is central to our mission of being an integral part of our community and make positive, sustainable changes,” said Paul Lacourciere, CEO of Sirona Fuels and 20 year veteran of the energy industry. “The Sirona Cares for Schools program allows us to continue this pursuit. We are also creating a way for other Bay Area businesses to participate in our mission of implementing this type of change. By recycling used cooking oil with us, Bay Area restaurants and other businesses can, at no cost to them, support our children, improve our environment and help grow local, green-collar jobs.”

Used cooking oil is considered a waste stream by many in the restaurant industry and Sirona Fuels wants to unlock the tremendous potential value this used cooking oil has through its conversion into ultra low carbon fuel. Through the Sirona Cares for Schools donation partnership environmentally friendly biodiesel is produced and sold in the Bay Area while schools reap financial benefits. According to Robert Kirsten, Sirona’s EVP of Business Development, "The Sirona Cares for Schools program benefits schools, restaurants, and the environment by simply redirecting a waste product to its most beneficial use."

“We are very excited about this program,” expressed Michelle Lacourciere, the Executive Director for Sirona Cares. “It presents a great opportunity for everyone to work together towards making a difference in the lives of Bay Area children. Through cooperation and a shared vision, parents, schools, businesses and governments can bring about positive change.”

It’s estimated that there are 10 million gallons1 of used cooking oil used each year in the Bay Area but only a fraction of that oil goes to the production of sustainable biofuels. Over 90% of collected oil re-enters the food chain as animal feed. According to the industry group the National Renderers Association2, “Current usage of rendered fats in the biofuels is estimated at 3 – 8%.” Sirona Fuels challenges restaurants in the nine counties of the Bay Area to join them in helping to support local schools and foster the green economy.

Information about the program is available at www.sironacaresforschools.com. Both schools and restaurants can register to participate in this program on the website.

About Sirona Fuels
Sirona Fuels is headquartered in San Francisco, CA with refinery operations in Oakland, CA. Its Blue Sky Bio-Diesel refinery currently produces a low-carbon, ASTM-spec biodiesel from its used cooking oil collection and refining business. Blue Sky has been operating a clean, reliable, courteous and free, used cooking oil collection business, which supplies much of the refinery’s oil needs. The company’s production model revolves around sustainable feedstocks that in-turn provide an affordable, environmentally friendly alternative to petroleum diesel. Sirona is a proud supporter of the local and international communities and businesses that help provide the company with its feedstock. For more information please visit www.sironafuels.com

About Sirona Cares
Sirona Cares is San Francisco-based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Its mission is to build sustainable communities by supporting children and developing sustainable jobs for those children when they grow up. Much of Sirona Care’s work over the last year and a half has been centered on Haiti development and relief work, including organization the largest drive for clothing, shoes and basic medical supplies in Northern California. For more information please visit www.sironacares.org

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If you’d like more information about this topic or to schedule an interview please call 510.868.9229 or email Matt at mtrocker@sironafuels.com

1. http://www.biodiesel.org/resources/reportsdatabase/reports/gen/19981001_gen-107.pdf

2. http://nationalrenderers.org/environmental/biofuels/