Exxon to plough $1bn a year into finding alternatives to fossil fuels
London — One of the world’s biggest oil companies is pumping more than $1bn a year into alternative forms of energy from algae engineered to bloom into biofuels and cells that turn emissions into electricity. The funds from Exxon Mobil are for more than 100 of research projects on environmentally friendly technologies in five to 10 key areas, according to vice-president of research and development Vijay Swarup. While any commercial breakthrough is at least a decade away, Exxon’s support for clean energy suggests the world’s most valuable publicly traded oil company is looking towards the possibility of a future where fossil fuels are less dominant. "These areas are massively challenging, and if we can solve those, they will have huge impacts on our business," said Swarup in a phone interview. "We bring more than money. We bring the science, the commitment to research." While Exxon has discussed some of its work before and runs advertisements about its work in algae, the remarks from...
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