With the world growing an increase in energy demand, the development and use of renewable, sustainable liquid biofuels has become a strategic priority for the EU. Biofuels can minimise energy import dependence, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and assist rural and agricultural development. Bioethanol can be produced from energy crops that do not compete with food crops for land use. This alcohol can be obtained from biomass feedstock and in particular from cellulose, a sugar present in the cell wall of woody plants.

ENERGYPOPLAR aims to develop energy poplar trees with both desirable cell-wall traits and high biomass yield under sustainable low-input conditions to be used as a source of cellulosic feedstock for bioethanol production.

ENERGYPOPLAR (FP7-211917) has received an EC contribution of € 3 million in the frame of the priority "Life Sciences, Biotechnology and Biochemistry for Sustainable Non-Food Products and Processes". This project has started on the 1st March 2008 and it will last for 4 years.

The consortium ENERGYPOPLAR, composed of 10 public and private European partners is coordinated by Francis Martin, from the INRA of Nancy. The EC Scientific Officer is Dr. Herman Van Mellaert. The former EC Scientific Officer was Piero Venturi (Directorate Agriculture, Food and Biotechnologies, DG RTD).

 

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LATEST NEWS

EnergyPoplar final Annual Newsletter - August 31st 2012 - direct link here

End of EnergyPoplar project - August 31st 2012

Summer school on bio-based economy - Ghent University. More information http://www.gbesummerschool.be/.

Energypoplar Newsletter n°3. Direct link here.

Next-generation sequencing and customized analysis workflow to detect mutations in five candidate genes for lignin biosynthesis in 768 pooled Populus nigra accessions. More information here.

A protein effector crucial to the symbiosis between poplar and fungi has been identified in the consortium Energypoplar (July 2011). More information here.

Energypoplar initial field test results GM poplars: bioethanol yield almost doubled (May 2011). More information: here.

The 26th New Phytologist Symposium: Bioenergy Trees (17-19 May 2011, INRA-Nancy, France) has provided a platform for brainstorming and discussions of the most recent systems biology applications aiming to deliver tailored sustainable tree lignocellulosic biomass for bioethanol. More information: here

Open position in Molecular Plant Sciences (researcher/postdoc) at Georg-August Universitat, Gottingen, Germany. More information in section "Job Opportunities".    

Energypoplar Second Year Newsletter. To download the Newsletter, click here

 

 

Energypoplar in Innovation Research. To read the article, click here

 

 

A presentation of the project has been broadcast on EURONEWS.  Direct link here.