Chiloe Pilot Project Will Investigate Ethanol Production From Seaweed

An Investment of US$5 million will bring North American biofuel development firm Bio Architecture Lab (BAL) to the Isle of Chiloe in Chile’s Los Lagos area, Region X.

The firm specializes in the development of the biofuel ethanol from algal material such as seaweed and will carry out tests through 2010 with the hope of setting up a permanent production operation in Chile.

Successful testing would lead to a further US$100 million investment to develop 10,000 hectares of seaweed plantations in Chilean waters.

The production of ethanol from seaweed would be well ideal for a country with a long coastline such as Chile. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia