Northern Bioenergy Partnership established

Dec. 9, 2010, Prince George, BC – The BC
Bioenergy Network (BCBN) is providing $100,000 in funding over three years to
support the development of the Northern Bioenergy Partnership (NBP) in northern
British Columbia.

NBP is an independent organization dedicated to building a
knowledge-based bioenergy industry in northern British Columbia. Industry has
also committed $50,000 for the first year of operation, and the Omineca Beetle
Action Coalition has committed $60,000 over three years. Further private sector
and public funding will be solicited through annual membership fees,
sponsorships, and other activities. The NBP will become a self-sustaining and
self-funded organization over the next three years.

The provincially funded BCBN, which
supports the growing bioenergy sector in British Columbia, previously
contributed $52,500 to Initiatives Prince George (IPG) to develop a business
plan for NBP. Developed by the NBP steering committee, the plan sets out a
strategy that will see the region emerge as a forest-based bioenergy centre of
excellence that is home to world-class research in partnership with industry.
With this new funding and partnerships now secured, NBP will establish as a
not-for-profit organization, recruit an executive director, and deliver on the
objectives of the business plan.

“We are pleased to see our initial
investment lead to the formal establishment of the Northern Bioenergy
Partnership, a northern bioenergy cluster led by industry members and supported
by the community and UNBC, to develop a world class bioenergy industry in
British Columbia,” says Michael Weedon, executive director of the BC Bioenergy
Network. “We recently cost shared with the Wood Pellet Association of Canada a
BC project evaluating best-in-class torrefaction technologies to develop the
next-generation biomass solid fuels.

We hope the BC members of WPAC and the
Northern Bioenergy Partnership will join in to support the development of this
collaborative.”

The NBP is now recruiting for the position
of executive director. Interested applicants should contact Initiatives Prince
George at 250-564-0282.