MANITOWOC, WI – Beginning in May, the city of Manitowoc will test run its buses with a biodiesel fuel derived from five percent biofuel from animal fat and 95 percent petroleum diesel, fleet manager Kevin Glaeser, according to the Manitowoc Herald Times newspaper. The mixture is produced by Bio-Blends Fuels, a local business owned by Dan and Tracie Kaderabek.

Glaeser said if preliminary tests show biodiesel works well, the fuel may be used for the city’s entire fleet of diesel-engine vehicles. The Maritime Metro Transit fleet alone uses about 5,000 gallons of diesel fuel a month.

Biodiesel produced by Bio-Blend Fuels could sell for between $2.25 and $2.35 a gallon once the refinery is in full production in May, the report said. On average, petroleum diesel in Manitowoc this week sold for $2.70 a gallon.