Associated Press
10-20-06
Iowa State named finalist for BP's bioenergy project
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- Iowa State University is among the finalists vying for
a $500 million bioenergy institute to be created by oil giant BP, university officials
said.
Iowa State is partnering with two other institutions to attract the Energy
Biosciences Institute, which will serve primarily as a research facility.
BP announced this week that Iowa State is among six partnerships and
institutions still being considered for the project.
"It's a very big deal, because it plays into our strengths here at Iowa State," said
John Brighton, Iowa State's vice president for research and economic
development. He called the project "a huge opportunity to add to our reputation
as a university, and as a state, to build the economy."
Iowa State's partners include the University of California-San Diego and the J.
Craig Venter Institute of Rockville, Md. The facility would be built near the San
Diego campus. Iowa State's exact role has not been determined, though officials
have touted its expertise in science, engineering and agriculture.
BP, one of the world's largest oil companies, announced in June that it planned
to dedicate $50 million per year for 10 years to the project. Jim Breson, an Iowa
State graduate who is general manager of BP's project, has visited Ames twice
to learn more about the university's capabilities.
In addition to the UC-San Diego and Iowa State partnership, several schools
were invited to submit proposals for the project: the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, partnering with Purdue University; the University of CaliforniaBerkeley; England's Cambridge University, and Imperial College in London.
Proposals must be submitted by Nov. 20, with BP's selection to be announced by
the end of the year, said Robert Brown, director of Iowa State's office of
biorenewables programs.
BP wanted universities vying for the project to partner, and Breson
recommended that Iowa State collaborate with UC-San Diego, said Brown, who
has played a major role in Iowa's efforts to expand in the burgeoning biofuels
industry.
"They saw that no single school could bring all the technical capability that they
needed," Brown said Thursday.
Iowa State brings several scientific strengths to the partnership, as well as its
location in the heart of a region that leads growth in the biofuels industry,
Brighton said.
UC-San Diego, located in a world-renowned biotechnology hub, is known for its
expertise in fundamental microbial sciences, Brown said.
The Venter Institute, a nonprofit organization known for its expertise in genomics
research, "would bring incredible genomics entrepreneurship to this project," he
said.
"We need each other," Brighton said.