Marine algae project launches with €6m in funding

A joint Scottish-Irish research project intended to identify the best strains of algae for producing biofuels officially launched last week after securing €6m in funding from a raft of government bodies.

The BioMara project will assess the suitability of marine macroalgae and microalgae as sustainable sources of biofuel. In particular it will focus on single-celled organisms that are capable of producing oil directly, and fast-growing seaweeds that can be converted into biofuels or used as biomass.

Research into algae-based biofuels is attracting high levels of interest and investment at the moment with a raft of firms - including Solazyme, LiveFuels and GreenFuel Technologies to name but a few - working to commercialise the necessary technology.

Advocates of algae-based biofuels argue that algaes are highly effective at soaking up carbon dioxide as they grow and that, unlike conventional energy crops, they can be cultivated without any impact on agricultural land and food supplies.

Marine algaes are thought to be a particularly promising research avenue as they require no land at all for cultivation and do not even need fresh water to grow.

The BioMara project will be undertaken at the Scottish Association of Marine Science and supported by researchers from the University of Strathclyde, the University of Ulster, Queen’s University, and the Dundalk Institute of Technology and the Institute of Technology in Sligo.

It is being funded by the EU, as well as the Crown Estate and agencies from the Scottish and Irish government and Northern Ireland Assembly.

Speaking at the launch of the project, Scottish Minister for Energy, Jim Mather, hailed it as "a major addition to the significant portfolio of renewable and green energy activity already underway in Scotland".

In related news, the Scottish government announced today that more than 100 communities have made successful applications to its Climate Challenge Fund after the latest round of 33 projects were awarded more than £2.2m in funding.

The scheme, which offers direct funding to community level projects designed to cut carbon emissions, has now awarded nearly £8.4m to 120 different initiatives, ranging from green building upgrades to youth education programmes.

Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead said the fund was "a real success story" that was "offering savings for individuals, showcasing simple energy efficiency measures, creating new jobs and greater investment in renewables, and educating and empowering the public to take decisive action".