SEATTLE, Oct. 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The 2008 Algae Biomass Summit opened Thursday to a capacity audience of more than 600 algae producers, scientists, investors and policy-makers from more than a dozen countries. These experts gathered to accelerate the development of algae-based solutions to global energy, environmental, and economic issues.  Keynote speaker and pre-eminent clean technology investor Vinod Khosla set the tone for the conference by stating his belief that given the continued developments in technology, algae can play a significant role in the replacement of petroleum oil.

“I am here today because I believe algae can be a solution,” stated Khosla. “I’m convinced someone here (at the Summit) will break the code. The exciting part is to see over 600 people in this room solving the problem. In fact, someone out there may have already solved it and I just don’t know yet.”

Day 0ne of the conference featured debate on the impact of the upcoming American presidential elections, an overview of ongoing governmental algae-to-biofuels programs by the National Renewable Energy Lab, venture capitalists discussing the impact of the current economic crisis on future private investments in algae, and an call to action for the algae industry to pull together in order to establish an body to influence federal policy-making.

Conference sessions continue today and will be highlighted by special guest speaker and cleantech advocate, U.S. Congressman Jay Inslee (D- WA), a member of the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming. Additional sessions also include panel discussions on algae’s potential use in jet fuel markets, environmental cleanup, and on advancing algal production technologies. The full conference schedule and a list of speakers can be found on the ABO website.

About the ABO

The Algal Biomass Organization (ABO) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote and advocate for the development of commercially-viable transportation and power generation fuels as well as other non-energy applications for algae biomass. Its membership is comprised of people, companies and organizations across the value chain. More information about ABO, including its leadership, membership, costs, benefits and members and their affiliations, is available at the website: www.algalbiomass.org

SOURCE  Algal Biomass Organization