Two UK universities are to collaborate on biofuels research with Royal Dutch Shell in what the oil giant calls a growing programme of agreements designed to complement Shell’s own biofuels research and development and to accelerate results.
The Centre of Excellence for Biocatalysis, Biotransformations and Biocatalytic Manufacture (CoEBio3), based at Manchester University, and the School of BioSciences at Exeter University will be investigating new raw materials and new biofuels production processes, with a focus on improving efficiencies and lowering costs, says the company.
Four other research agreements were also announced by Shell: with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, US; the University of Campinas (Unicamp) in Sao Paulo, Brazil; the Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; and the Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (QIBEBT) in Qingdao, China.
The research agreements will last between two and five years.
Dr. Graeme Sweeney, Shell Executive Vice President Future Fuels and CO2, said, “Shell’s in-house biofuels R&D is longstanding, leading and globally coordinated. However, we know that adding to our knowledge through genuine and nimble partnerships with top experts worldwide will be critical to speed and success in the fast-moving area of biofuels. We have been working with some partners for a good while already but are delighted to announce these six collaborations today. We welcome both the injection of expertise and enthusiasm.”
Commenting on the collaboration, Professor Nick Turner, Director of CoEBio3, said, “White biotechnology has traditionally been the preserve of the pharmaceutical and fine chemical industries but is poised to expand dramatically over the next few years. CoEBio3 is extremely excited at the prospect of working with Shell in this innovative programme to further existing techniques in the field and develop new, ground-breaking technology.”
The research agreements announced today are designed to complement Shell’s partnerships with five companies working on the commercial application of new biofuels technologies.
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