Viridesco Ltd, a developing world jatropha biofuel company, was launched in 2007. The executive team, based in London, had advised multiple businesses in the renewables space and in so doing formulated an unconventional biofuel model, which became the premise for Viridesco.

The first Viridesco project is located at Eagle Farm in Northern Mozambique near Lichinga. The area has a high annual rainfall (1000+ mms) which is particularly important for ensuring a good yield when no irrigation is being used, as at Eagle Farm. Jatropha is often heralded as a drought-resistant crop, however, in order to farm the crop commercially without irrigation (an unnecessary expense) a natural rainfall of this order is required for the plants to prosper. It is hugely beneficial that jatropha, an inedible crop, can be grown on tracts of marginal land that are not being used for food production, thus removing it from the food vs. fuel debate, which plagues many other biofuel crops.

Our plantation at Eagle Farm is relatively small at 200 hectares but part of our business model is to artificially enlarge our output by fostering outgrower schemes in the local community. We grow extra seedlings at the plantation which we then give to smallholder farmers in the local community for free. The farmers receive support with maintaining the jatropha plants once they begin to yield, and then they have the option to sell the seeds back to the plantation. There is an inherent risk for Viridesco that they will choose not to sell to us but there are few buyers in these remote areas so the risk is small.

Furthermore, the cost of the seedling program is not substantial. Also, commercial Jatropha farming is still at an early stage so buying land and planting out many thousands of hectares at once is a liability; outgrower schemes remove this risk as well as giving back to the community.

We crush our seed on site, which we then sell directly for use in diesel engines. Jatropha oil is high grade and will run smoothly in a diesel engine, but in order to optimise performance we work with a technology partner, Elsbett, who perform engine conversions. This does not prevent the use of diesel in the engine but also allows for the optimal use of PPO (pure plant oil). This removes the need to convert the oil into biodiesel which is an expensive process requiring a facility, as well as costly, dangerous and inaccessible chemical inputs such as methanol.

By removing this need, we can produce a much cheaper fuel that can be sold at a discount locally to high-usage oil consumers who have had a conversion done. The mileage per gallon and the efficiency are roughly similar to diesel, although another big advantage is that PPO is cleaner and more carbon friendly than both diesel and bio-diesel.

There are many different models for producing biofuel. Biofuels often get bundled together and critiqued as one collective group, which leads to negative myths surrounding their use. However, as is the case with other things, there are good ways and bad ways of producing biofuels. They are part of the solution for the worlds fuel needs although they are not likely to ever be the only solution.

Second generation biofuels such as cellulosic ethanol and algae-based fuels could one day be very significant. As for the Viridesco model, it enables villages all around the developing world to grow and produce their own fuel in a cost-effective way.

More information on their website: http://www.viridesco.com/

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