WEB: www.bebout-and-associates.com

TV-2, the largest commercial television station in Norway, confirmed today its plans to film the algae open bioreactor system on the campus of the University of Nevada at Reno (UNR). The bioreactor is a joint project between Bebout and Associates of Savannah, Enegis LLC of Virginia and Dr. John Cushman of UNR and has been operating since November 2008.

TV-2 has chosen the project as illustrative of a number of potential solutions to global warming and climate change. The program will likely be aired as part of a series leading up to the Climate Change Conference to be held in Copenhagen in December. At least 40 world leaders have said they plan to attend the conference, which follows two years of tough UN-led negotiations to draft a new climate change agreement.

“We are flattered that TV-2 has chosen our project,” said John Bebout, Principal Consultant and founder of Bebout and Associates. “There are certainly larger algae projects out there, but I don’t believe that any have developed a greater understanding of the steps necessary to bring this technology to commercialization than we have.”

Jeff Eppink, President of Enegis LLC, said that their algae growing system, called an “open bioreactor” because it is exposed to the elements, has produced numerous algae crops since its construction one year ago. “We have successfully grown algae, outdoors, in every season of the year,” said Eppink. “What we have learned has allowed us to model and predict everything from algae productivity to water and energy requirements. This is particularly important for evaluating new and existing technologies. If algae-derived biofuels are ever to be competitive with fossil fuels, they need to be produced in the most efficient and cost-effective manner possible.”

When asked if commercial production of biofuels is imminent, Bebout said “It’s getting closer.” He explained that it is all a matter of energy balance: how much energy it takes to grow and process the algae compared to how much energy you get out of it. “People all over the world are working to develop more energy-efficient processes for algae-to-biofuels. It seems like every day brings another innovation, and every innovation brings us closer to commercialization.”