New biofuels need 5-10 years more research - Shell
16 October 2008 08:39 [Source: ICIS news]
SINGAPORE (ICIS news)--Royal Dutch Shell predicts another 5-10 years of developmental work in 2nd generation biofuels before the still fledgling industry becomes commercially viable, a top executive from the Anglo-Dutch energy giant said on Thursday.
“We are 5-10 years away from commercial volumes of 2nd generation biofuels being made available,” said Graeme Sweeney, executive vice president of future fuels and carbon dioxide (CO2) organisation for Shell.
“We clearly believe that it can be brought to commerciality, otherwise we will not be investing,” he told ICIS news, adding the company had made a more than $1bn investment in developing the alternative energy in the past five years.
There still remained the need to investigate and understand the varying characteristics of 2nd generation biofuels in order to gain commercial viability in terms of sustainability and emissions reductions, said Sweeney.
“Our view is that the yield from algae-based solutions is much higher than any of those plant-based oil solutions,” when asked why Shell had not invested in jatropha.
“We have a process that allows us to access large scale open-pond production, which we believe is cost competitive and can achieve a high yield percentage,” Sweeney said with regard to the cost effectiveness of algae-based biofuel production.
Second generation biofuels unlike their first generation counterparts are garnered from non-food based feedstock such as seaweed and algae and are therefore seen as more sustainable.
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By: Bohan Loh
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