Shell president says company is “investing and believes in cellulosic ethanol”; says Shell is researching algae

The president of Shell said that his company is investing and believes in cellulosic ethanol. John Hofmeister said that in 10 to 20 years, the company would produce fuel from waste products, wood chips and switch grass. Hofmeister also confirmed that Shell is investigating the potential of algae as a feedstock. Shell has a partnership with Iogen and Volkswagen to develop cellulosic ethanol.

Recently, Shell UK chairman James Smith warned against imposing too many penalties on fossil fuels as a means of addressing emissions and climate change. “Wind farms are expensive, nuclear stations have difficulty dealing with waste, biofuels boost food prices and oil sands produce even higher emissions than oil,” Smith said. “Energy demand is going to continue to accelerate. If lawmakers reject some energy sources, we won’t get anything left.”

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