SeQuential Biofuels Opens 1st Solar-Powered, Biofuel Retail Station

Yesterday was the grand unveiling of what is being billed as a first-of-its-kind biofuels retail station. SeQuential Biofuels, the first major fuel retailer in the Pacific Northwest to offer several biofuel-blended motor fuels to the mainstream market under a single, branded canopy, says the new station is no ordinary pit stop. Renewable energy, energy efficiency and sustainable design elements are themes throughout the site. The station features 244 solar panels covering the fueling islands that provide 30 to 50 percent of the electrical power that the station will require annually. A "living roof" of 4,800 live plants installed in five inches of soil on the roof of the convenience store will help cool the building during the summer.

Other eco-friendly design elements include stormwater detention "bioswales" where plants will filter pollutants from rainwater that rinses the roadways and parking areas and will clean the water before it leaves the site. SeQuential also has made a significant effort to source building materials that are made in the Pacific Northwest region.

Located just off Interstate 5 in Eugene, Oregon, the biofuels station will provide biofuel blends approved for use in all gasoline and diesel vehicles:
-- 10% ethanol with 90% gasoline for all gasoline vehicles
-- 85% ethanol with 15% gasoline for E85 Flex Fuel Vehicles
-- 5% biodiesel with 95% diesel for all diesel vehicles
-- 20% biodiesel with 80% diesel for most diesel vehicles
-- 99.9% biodiesel with 0.1% diesel for some diesel vehicles

"We have watched the offering of mainstream organic products and recycled products expand significantly over the last five years," said Ian Hill, project developer and SeQuential Biofuels co-founder. "Today our customers are demanding domestically-produced, renewable motor fuel options as well."

The land where the station is located was the site of a previous fuel station that shut down more than ten years ago. Under supervision of the former owner, the site had been contaminated by leaking gasoline tanks and pumps and the owner had abandoned it. SeQuential worked with Lane County and with the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality to clean up the previously polluted "Brownfield" property and put it back into productive use.

The fuel station also includes a convenience store that carries top-shelf natural foods and beverages, many of which are produced by regional companies. The store also houses an annex of Sweet Life Patisserie, an established local coffee and pastry shop renowned for its premium coffees, baked goods and savories, complete with wireless Internet and an inviting seating area. Local farmers will stock a seasonal fresh produce stand also located at the station.