U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer toured a 25,000-square-foot pilot plant operated by Range Fuels in Denver this week to get a close-up view on efforts to provide a steady supply of domestic alternative fuel. Broomfield-based Range Fuels plans to open a commercial plant near Soperton, GA, next year to turn wood waste into fuel using a proprietary technology it has been testing at the Denver plant since January.

The United States has an estimated 1 billion tons of biomass available each year, enough for 100 billion gallons of cellulosic ethanol. USDA is looking to guarantee loans of up to $240 million per company developing alternative energy, Schafer said.