Chevron and DOE Establish Alliance On Biofuels

Chevron may be reeling from being awarded a Greenwash award last week, but the company insists it is doing its bit for the environment. It has just announced a five-year strategic research alliance to advance the development of transportation biofuels with the U.S. Department of Energy.

Researchers from Chevron and the DoE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) will collaborate on converting cellulosic biomass, such as forestry and agricultural wastes, into biofuels such as ethanol and renewable diesel.

“Our goal is to further diversify the world’s energy sources in order to help meet the growth in future energy demand,” said Don Paul, vice president and chief technology officer, Chevron Corporation. “Through this public-private collaboration we hope to broaden the energy mix by accelerating the development of the next generation of process technologies that will convert cellulosic biomass into biofuels. Process efficiency and suitability for industrial-scale deployment, similar to today’s transportation infrastructure systems, are key success factors.”

“Increasing the amount of fuels we can make from America’s farms, forests and fields will greatly enhance the nation’s energy security and economy and help the environment,” adds Dan Arvizu, director, NREL. “Agreements such as this will help us accomplish that.”