Imperium Renewables' decision to postpone its IPO might delay its plans to build a biodiesel plant in Hawaii, according to the Honolulu Advertiser.
The $345 million offering was to have financed the plant, which is expected to supply the Hawaiian Electric Co. with up to 100 million gallons of biodiesel annually, according to the publication.
The plant, expected to begin operations by the end of this year, will cost an estimated $91 million, the story said.
Imperium spokesperson John Williams said the company is still committed to building the Hawaiian plant and has not announced any changes.
But as speculation about Imperium's Hawaii plant heated up, Nova Biosource Fuels announced Friday that another biodiesel plant is going forward.
In spite of biofuels' tough times -- and wary investors -- the company said it had secured $41 million in credit from WestLB, including a $6 million loan for the construction of a biodiesel refinery in Illinois.
Meantime, some companies are turning to new technologies, such as biodiesel from algae, as prices for the crops currently used to make biofuels continue to rise.
Better Biodiesel said Friday it plans to buy GeoAlgae Technologies, which is developing a low-cost feedstock for biodiesel from "geologic resources."
The latter company does not specify whether it focuses on algae, although its name would imply that's the case.
GeoAlgae has acquired university biofuels research and plans to make additional technology purchases and partnerships, according to the announcement.
Of course, GeoAlgae isn't the only company trying to figure out how to produce mass quantities of algae affordably (see Salty Fuel and Chevron Seeks Slime, Atraverda Gets $21.5M).
In response to Imperium's announcement Thursday, Emerging Markets Online analyst Will Thurmond said new feedstocks were becoming increasingly important as more biodiesel producers chase limited amounts of vegetable oil (see Imperium IPO Delay Underlines Feedstock Shortage, Analyst Says).