Move over silicon valley: biofuels are taking over!

British Petroleum, making good on their Beyond Petroleum campaign, has awarded a $500 million grant to UC Berkeley and the University of Illinois for an alternative fuel research center.

The Energy Biosciences Institute will focus on research into new and clean energy sources. According to a BP press release:

The EBI will also pursue bioscience-based research in three other key areas; the conversion of heavy hydrocarbons to clean fuels, improved recovery from existing oil and gas reservoirs, and carbon sequestration.

UC Berkeley and the University of Illinois were selected among several higher education institutions worldwide. According to an article in the San Francisco Gate, California's recent efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions was a factor in the decision to base the new institute in the state, as was the fact that the University of Illinois is home to the Institute of Genomic biology, an alternative fuels research center.