New funding for bioenergy research

The research project will look into the financial viability of using sources of bioenergy in the West Midlands.

The University of Wolverhampton Business School was awarded £51,000 over three years by the John Oldacre Foundation, which is an educational charity.

The aim of the research is to help enterprising people in rural areas look at sources of energy, such as wind power, biomass and the growth of crops to generate energy.

Director of Studies, Dr Graham Tate, said: “We are delighted to have received this grant to undertake research into this important and topical area. It puts the University of Wolverhampton at the cutting edge of this type of research and will assist bioenergy producers to meet UK targets for green power generation.”

The research will be carried out in partnership with the University’s School of Applied Sciences and the field work will be undertaken by Aurelian Mbzibain, from Cameroon, who was appointed specifically for the project.

He will visit farmers to interview them about what they are doing currently and to ascertain their aspirations in terms of renewable energy. A further phase of the research will examine the costs and returns of the various bioenergy enterprises and this will lead to financial data being made available via the web to aspiring renewable energy producers.

ENDS

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