More Energy Excellence at Michigan Tech

Michigan now has 6 Centers of Energy Excellence off the ground to make the state an energy leader.

The centers have companies partnering with in-state universities on new alternative energy programs.

Michigan Tech is involved in 3 of the 6 centers.

2 of those have just been announced.

One of Michigan Tech’s new centers will work on making specialty biochemical products out of waste from a corn ethanol plant.

The other new one will create a small-scale biofuel refinery in Alpena.

Last summer, Michigan Tech and Michigan State were named partners in the first center.

The goal of that one is a commercially-viable production plant in the U.P. turning wood into biofuel.

Mascoma, a Massachusetts company, plans to open the plant in Kinross in 2012.