[Sustainable-biodiesel] Your feedback requested

[Erik Hoffner]

Thanks for being a voice for sustainability at NBB,
Emily.

As a board member of a small, community-owned,
sustainable-feedstock startup, I can tell you that our
number one issue is obtaining financing. Not equity.
We nailed that down long ago. But to finalize our
financing, we need to secure the remainder in debt.

The amount of debt we need is too much for most local
banks and too small for most national ones, and it's
in an industry that 99.9% of bankers have no
experience with. It's impossible to point to other
projects in the Northeast to say that it works. On top
of that there is the over-hyping of biofuel investment
in recent years that's collapsed interest, in
combination with the subprime fallout. 

Erik Hoffner
Boardmember, Northeast Biodiesel
Greenfield, MA

--- emily at sustainable-biodiesel.org wrote:

> I have been asked to speak at the 2008 NBB Opening
> General Session, to
> contribute a perspective from smaller producers, the
> sustainability
> community, and alternative feedstocks. After a
> welcome from Joe Jobe and Ed
> Hegland, there will be a discussion among Ed, Gary
> Haer (REG), Graham Noyes
> (Imperium) and myself (SBS, Philadelphia
> Fry-o-Diesel, and The Energy
> Cooperative) about some of the issues facing the
> industry now.
> 
>  
> 
> This discussion is a forum to acknowledge some of
> the challenges facing our
> industry, some of the highpoints and trends of 07,
> and talk about best
> practices, messaging, and policies that we can
> employ in 2008. This is also
> a meaningful opportunity to communicate the message
> of sustainability to a
> very broad audience.
> 
>  
> 
> I view having a seat at this table as the result of
> our entire community's
> tireless hours advocating for sustainability and
> making it happen on their
> home front. This is a great opportunity for our
> community, I want to do my
> best to represent it well. A big part of this means
> getting feedback from
> you. In the hopes of kick-starting a discussion
> here, I have listed out
> several questions - would you take a moment and
> reply to some or all of
> them?
> 
>  
> 
> *	What it is that you would like to communicate in
> this forum? What
> issues would you like to see brought to light?
> *	Topics covered will likely include: Feedstock
> issues, Government
> policy, Environmental sustainability, Financial
> sustainability, Implications
> of Energy Bill mandate as related to fuel quality
> issues, New technologies,
> Food vs. fuel issues. Are there other issues you
> would like discussed? 
> *	Do you have a point of view or experience to share
> with respect to
> any one of these topics? Having real life anecdotes
> will be helpful in
> illustrating certain points.
> *	What do you think about the state of the industry?
> *	What could we do better? 
> *	What are your top three challenges on a daily
> basis?
> *	What are your top three big-picture challenges?
> 
>  
> 
> I strongly encourage you to respond on list so that
> we can start a
> constructive discussion here. However, I also
> welcome feedback directly at
> <mailto:emily at sustainable-biodisel.org>
> emily at sustainable-biodisel.org. The
> conference is only 3 weeks away, so the sooner you
> can respond the better.
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you for your thoughtful contributions, and I
> look forward to hearing
> from you.
> 
>  
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> Emily Bockian Landsburg
> 
> SBS Organizing Committee
> <http://www.sustainable-biodiesel.org/> 
> 
> Philadelphia Fry-o-Diesel
> <http://www.fryodiesel.com/> 
> 
> The Energy Cooperative <http://www.theenergy.coop/> 
> 
>  
> 
> > _______________________________________________
> Sustainable-biodiesel mailing list
> Sustainable-biodiesel at lists.emji.net
>
http://lists.emji.net/mailman/listinfo/sustainable-biodiesel
> 


--

  "Follow the example of the best, those who give up everything to build a better world." 

  - Salvador Allende

--


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