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Candidates revealed for the 2012 World Bioenergy Award

Apr. 19, 2012, Jönköping, Sweden – The six final candidates to the second annual World Bioenergy Award 2012
have been chosen and one of them will be announced as the winner on May
29 at the opening session of World Bioenergy 2012.

“We can now present the six final candidates for the World Bioenergy Award 2012. They are entrepreneurs, researchers and government officials from three continents and represent complementary parts of the international bioenergy sector” says Jakob Hirsmark, Product manager of World Bioenergy and member of the jury.

“We can see a fantastic development of bioenergy globally today. It is driven by climate and energy policies. But just as important is the actions and engagement of fore-runners. With this prize we want to reward these inspired individuals” says Kent Nyström, president of World Bioenergy Association and member of the jury.

The aim of the World Bioenergy Award is to recognize an individual who has made a difference: a business leader, politician or researcher who in a crucial way has furthered the development of the bioenergy sector.

The nominations for the award in 2012, in an alphabetical order, are:

Mr. Al Costa, Spain

Mr. Costa is engaged in the development of a new sugarcane variety that can be grown under special conditions as it only produces 7% sugar and thus consumes relatively little water. This variety should be able to produce up to 200 tons of biomass per hectare, which is over five times the usual 40 tons which are obtained from the usual forest sources employed today.

Mr. Aditya Handa, India

Mr. Handa is the driving force behind establishing bioenergy as a sustainable energy source especially in emerging economies such as India and Ghana. Some of his key achievements include: Dedicated energy plantation on marginal land, which reduces the impact of climate change through enhanced green cover and carbon sequestration, as well as income and employment opportunities for rural communities.

Mr. Timur Ivanov, Russia

Mr. Ivanov has led the Russian Energy Agency to work hard for bioenergy development. The basis was developed for multiple implementations of the bioenergy projects in the feasible areas including methodical, legislative and technological support and finance instruments. The State Program of Renewable energy and Bioenergy Development has been introduced together with the Concept of State Support Measures to facilitate bioenergy investment projects as well as several regional development programs on bioenergy in Russia.

Mr. Robert Parker, United Kingdom

Mr. Parker’s company is a global technology provider for cellulosic ethanol production with a focus on waste feedstock. He has been a pivotal figure in reducing the price of cellulosic ethanol to drive mainstream adoption via a multiple feedstock technological platform. Under his leadership ethanol plants across the US, China, Brazil and Russia are under realization some in short and others in long term

Mr. Dilip Ranade, India

Dr Ranade is a society oriented scientist working on biohydrogen, biogas, and waste water treatment. He has spent around 30 years of research on bioenergy and handled numerous research projects funded by government agencies and industries. He is a pioneer in the field of anaerobic microbiology and has worked on nearly all the biodegradable wastes in India and explored their conversion into biogas.

Mr. Harry Stokes, USA

Mr. Stokes has developed, funded and managed Project Gaia to improve the health, economic status and quality of life of millions of families in the developing world. For over a decade Harry has led a global initiative that promotes alcohol fuel and their technologies for production and end use, for cooking and other household appliances such as ovens and refrigerators.

The vision is clean, efficient, affordable and safe cooking for African homes, and the opportunity to move away from dependence on perennially scarce firewood, charcoal, dung, twigs, grass and similar fuels.

A difficult task for the jury

The first prize winner in 2010 was Professor Laércio Couto from Brazil. He was honoured for his applied research into environmentally appropriate and efficient methods of cultivating eucalyptus, which replaces huge amounts of coal and other fossil fuels.

During the three month nomination period, fellow colleagues nominated potential winners for the World Bioenergy Award 2012. As a result, 21 very high quality nominations were submitted, representing 4 continents and 10 countries. The nominations represented a broad range of professional areas and was therefore not an easy task for the jury, as every single proposal received important arguments to support its nomination. The jury consisted of the board members of the World Bioenergy Association and the product manager of World Bioenergy 2012.

Click here for more information about the nominated candidates and other facts about the prize.

About World Bioenergy 2012

Organized every second year, this major global bioenergy get-together is based on the unique “Taking you from Know-How to Show-How” concept, combining tradeshow, conference sessions, field excursions and matchmaking into one comprehensive event. Please visit our web site (www.worldbioenergy.com) to read more about the different parts of the event. As well, the 2012 World Pellets Conference is arranged as a part of World Bioenergy.

The organizers of World Bioenergy 2012 are: Elmia AB and the Swedish Bioenergy Association, Svebio. Venue: Elmia, Jönköping, Sweden.