State leases 1,000 acres for switchgrass in Oklahoma Panhandle

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Apr 25, 2008 by David Page

The state's next-generation bioenergy agency has leased 1,000 acres in the Oklahoma Panhandle from a historic agriculture operator for the world's largest plot of switchgrass for cellulosic ethanol production.

The Oklahoma Bioenergy Center arranged a lease with Hitch Enterprises Inc., a state agriculture operator for 119 years, for 1,000 acres near Guymon.

"The 1,000 acres of switchgrass marks another monumental event in Oklahoma's heritage of energy production," said David Fleischaker, state energy secretary. "I'm confident there are many more to come."

Planting of the switchgrass crop is expected to begin in May, depending on soil temperatures, and be completed in June.

The planting will come only one year after Gov. Brad Henry signed legislation creating the Oklahoma Bioenergy Center with initial funding of $10 million. The center was developed to put Oklahoma at the forefront of the emerging biofuels industry. Partners in the Oklahoma Energy Center include the University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma State University and the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation in Ardmore.

The Noble Foundation will supervise the planting of the 1,000- acre switchgrass field in the Panhandle.

Smaller demonstration crops of switchgrass and sorghum will be planted near Chickasha and Maysville in central Oklahoma.

Oklahoma State University will manage a 150-acre site for sorghum near Chickasha. The Noble Foundation will manage 114 acres in switchgrass near Maysville.

The smaller crop sites in central Oklahoma will provide more convenient opportunities for demonstrations, education and research, said Steve Rhines, vice president and general counsel for the Noble Foundation.

Developing feedstock for biofuels from crops with higher energy output than corn and that do not compete with human and animal food sources is a priority for the Oklahoma Bioenergy Center.

"Rising food costs recently resulted in a pushback against renewable fuels," Fleischaker said. "However, cellulosic ethanol from sources like switchgrass and sorghum are non-competitive with food sources for animals and humans and remove cellulosic ethanol from this discussion."

Having the 1,000-acres of dedicated land will provide a living laboratory for the Bioenergy Center to demonstrate the advantages of switchgrass, a perennial grass that is naturally drought resistant and grows on marginal lands, he said.

"An experimental plot that large is unique," Fleischaker said. "It will be used as a sandbox for equipment manufacturers like Caterpillar and John Deere to research and test equipment for harvesting feedstock crops."

Research will also include production techniques and harvest, collection and transport methods. Planting the switchgrass seeds will be part of the research.

"We have planted switchgrass but nothing nearly on this scale," Rhines said.

Another project partner, Ceres Inc. of Thousand Oaks, Calif., will provide the seeds.

Although the switchgrass will be planted in May and June, the first harvest is not expected until 2010.

"It will take three years for full maturation," Rhines said.

The first harvest is expected to parallel the completion of a cellulosic biorefinery being constructed by Abengoa Bioenergy in Hugoton, Kan., less than 35 miles from the 1,000-acre switchgrass plot.

Abengoa Bioenergy, based in Chesterfield, Mo., but part of a company based in Spain, announced plans in August for a $400 million project to turn corn stalks, switchgrass and other biomass into ethanol in Hugoton. The plant is expected to be completed in 2010.

Switchgrass grown at the Panhandle site will be transported to the Abengoa facility for refining. Having feedstock sources close to refining facilities reduces transportation costs and improves the economic feasibility of biofuels, Rhines said.

"The value of the Oklahoma Bioenergy Center to the cellulosic ethanol industry cannot be overstated," said Gerson Santos-Leon, executive vice president, Abengoa Bioenergy New Technologies. "The early and aggressive establishment of 1,000 acres of switchgrass will provide researchers, scientists, agricultural producers and industry - not only in Oklahoma but across the nation - with important information that will help establish the emerging cellulosic ethanol industry."

Hitch Enterprises is expected to contribute more than just land to the project.

"Their manager has been on site growing crops for decades - not years decades," Rhines said.

The family-owned agricultural company has been operating cattle feeding, cattle production, pork production and agriculture operations for 119 years.

"These fields are vital for the continued development and understanding of dedicated energy crops," said Michael A. Cawley, president and CEO for the Noble Foundation. "This is more than just a research project that ends in the field. We have a market endpoint."