ConocoPhillips Announces Collaboration with Colorado

ConocoPhillips [NYSE:COP] announced today that it has signed a $5 million, multi-year sponsored research agreement with the Colorado Center for Biorefining and Biofuels (C2B2), a research center of the Colorado Renewable Energy Collaboratory, to develop new ways to convert biomass into low-carbon transportation fuels.

The Collaboratory, a joint venture of the University of Colorado at Boulder, Colorado State University, the Colorado School of Mines, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) formed C2B2 in March 2007, to conduct research at all four institutions. The new collaboration will build on a variety of active research projects being conducted by Colorado scientists and students to develop new sources of transportation biofuels. The first project will involve converting algae into renewable fuel.

“We are pleased to be launching this promising new research effort in conjunction with C2B2,” said Stephen Brand, ConocoPhillips senior vice president, Technology. “This agreement with the Collaboratory offers a unique opportunity to combine the technical strengths of the member institutions with ConocoPhillips’ spirit of innovation to drive discovery of the next generation of transportation fuels.”

“This commitment by ConocoPhillips marks the first multi-year sponsored research project for C2B2 and is another milestone in our drive to make Colorado the nation’s renewable energy capital,” said David Hiller, executive director of the Colorado Renewable Energy Collaboratory. “We look forward to working with ConocoPhillips to create new forms of clean energy"

“Even without climate change as an issue, fossil fuels are non-renewable,” said Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter. “For ConocoPhillips to partner with us to convert biomass to transportation fuels fits in nicely with how we think about the new energy economy in the state.”