WASHINGTON -- United States Senator Mary Landrieu, D-La., today announced that the small-scale cellulosic biorefinery in Jennings, La. will receive up to $40 million in federal funding over the next five years. These funds are intended to make cellulosic ethanol cost-competitive with corn-based ethanol by 2012. Cellulosic energy is produced from agricultural waste, not from food, making it an incredibly efficient alternative energy source.

"As we search for a way out of America's energy crisis, we will not be able to rely on one single solution to move the country forward," Sen. Landrieu said. "Renewables must be one component of our energy policy to diminish our dependence on foreign oil. While Louisiana has long been a leader in the country's traditional energy production, I am proud that our state is poised to be at the forefront of alternative energy development as well. We have vast natural resources here at home, all of which we must harness to move the country toward greater energy independence."

Last year, Sen. Landrieu voted for a bill that requires the production of 21 billion gallons of renewable, cellulosic fuels by 2022.

The Jennings, La. facility was dedicated in May 2008 and is expected to produce 1.4 million gallons of ethanol per year from waste products, such as sugarcane bagasse, agricultural byproducts, waste wood products, and other non-food based energy crops.