Dr. Carl Kukkonen, the founder and CEO of ViaSpace and its subsidiary ViaSpace Green Energy, provided an important summary of the developing biofuel company and its plans in a recent audio interview. In it, Kukkonen covered not only the company’s unique selling proposition, but also pointed to some specific projects and potential customers the company is developing.
ViaSpace is all about the science of efficient energy, a subject the Kukkonen knows well, having a Ph.D. in theoretical physics and having directed a research center for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. As he indicated, ViaSpace is in business to provide a low cost fuel for clean, renewable, and dependable bio-electricity power plants. The company’s strong business advantage is their crop, called Giant King Grass, the fastest growing crop in the world, and the lowest cost biomass fuel in the world.
A non-food crop, Giant King Grass is able to produce many more tons per acre than corn, meaning easier land requirements and lower costs. Completely safe with no genetic modification, the grass grows a full crop 2-3 times a year, without requiring re-planting. It grows, can be harvested, and then grows again, continuing for many years. The ultimate goal is to integrate a Giant King Grass plantation with a processing and power plant, meaning that the only thing produced and distributed would be pure energy, a highly efficient arrangement.
From an environmental standpoint, Giant King Grass has its biggest advantages. Unlike coal, or other fossil fuels, it is fully renewable, available forever. It is also environmentally healthy, releasing no more carbon dioxide than it consumes in the growing process, making it effectively carbon neutral. In addition, unlike solar or wind solutions, it is easily stored, ready for energy generation any time of the day or night, in any weather. Further, it dovetails easily into the existing energy infrastructure, since it is readily processed into easy to use pellets. As if that weren’t enough, Giant King Grass can also be processed into liquid biofuels, for use in cars and planes, and can even be used to produce plastics and other products.
Kukkonen spoke about a 280 acre plantation and nursery already up and running, to be used in part as a demonstration site for potential large energy customers. The site has been visited by potential customers from around the world, and ViaSpace is already working on a joint venture agreement to produce Giant King Grass in the Dominican Republic, for processing and shipment to a major European electric utility, generating millions in revenue, and opening the door to other opportunities.
For additional information, visit the company’s website at www.ViaSpace.com
Let us hear your thoughts: VIASPACE, Inc. Message Board
