Venter introduces his algae with ExxonMobil today.
From the Q&A session…
Craig Venter, Synthetic Genomics:
“Water is key. We want to use salt or brackish water so we are not taking agricultural resources. We just need sunlight, salt water, and CO2. These are abundant in many parts of the world. Fuel cannot compete with agriculture if this is to be successful.”
“If we can find a natural strain, we would choose to use that… But it is highly unlikely that an algae has naturally evolved to produce the fuel we need in volume. We will absolutely need to genetically modify them, if not reproduce them entirely, in the long run to get the results we want.”
“The team at SGI has made some nice breakthroughs. We can change a few genes in the algae to have them constantly secrete hydrocarbons into the media. This is very different from the batch harvesting of the past.”
Dr. Emil Jacobs, vice president of research and development at ExxonMobil (EMRE):
“ExxonMobil is very excited about this program… We plan to spend over $600 million… We are committed to the activity and we are going to spend the money we need to be successful. When you look at this program within ExxonMobil, it’s one of our biggest.”
Mayor Jerry Sanders, with an eye to regional development:
“When you think of pond scum, think of San Diego.”
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