Neste takes part in the Treesearch research platform focusing on forest based materials
Neste Corporation Press release 20 June 2018 at 10 am (EET)
Treesearch research platform was inaugurated in Sweden in late May. To date it is Sweden's largest investment in research and the development of knowledge and competence in the field of materials and chemicals from the forest. Neste is one of the parties involved in the long-term research investment.
Treesearch, where the continuation of the Wallenberg Wood Science Centre (WWSC) is a central factor, involves allocations of over a billion SEK over a 10-year period. Thanks to collaboration between academia, industry, private foundations and the state, a world-leading open research environment is being created is through Treesearch, laying the foundation for future innovations from the forest and contributing to the bioeconomy.
Neste is one of the largest biofuel players in the world and is ranked as the world's second most sustainable company in the Global 100 list.
“We believe that many of the sustainable solutions of the future are based on lignocellulosic materials from the forest. As far as we are concerned, Treesearch is one way of raising the pace of innovative efforts to find alternatives to fossil raw materials,” says Lars Peter Lindfors, Senior Vice President, Technology at Neste.
About 250 doctoral candidates will conduct their research studies on the platform. It is a significant number considering that the Swedish forestry industry today has 70 active researchers with researcher training.
Particular focus is being put on attracting and developing young researcher talents and linking basic research to challenge-driven research. An interim objective is also to raise the level and depth of research, and hence the development of the forestry industry.
“Fundamental research alone will not meet sustainability challenges. For innovations to be implemented in reality more cooperation is required between academia and industry. Treesearch is just such an area in which innovations become reality, and it is for this reason that we think it so important to be involved,” Lindfors continues.
Neste Corporation
Kaisa Lipponen,
Director, Corporate Communications
For more information:
Lars Peter Lindfors, Senior Vice President, Technology, tel +358 50 458 3605
Neste in brief
Neste (NESTE, Nasdaq Helsinki) creates sustainable solutions for transport, business, and consumer needs. Our wide range of renewable products enable our customers to reduce climate emissions. We are the world's largest producer of renewable diesel refined from waste and residues, introducing renewable solutions also to the aviation and plastics industries. We are also a technologically advanced refiner of high-quality oil products. We want to be a reliable partner with widely valued expertise, research, and sustainable operations. In 2017, Neste's revenue stood at EUR 13.2 billion. In 2018, Neste placed 2nd on the Global 100 list of the most sustainable companies in the world. Read more: neste.com
Facts about Treesearch
Treesearch is supported by KTH, Chalmers and Linköping University, the Central University, Lund University and industry represented by Neste, BillerudKorsnäs, Stora Enso, Holmen, SCA, Svea skog, Södra, Tetra Pak, Ahlström-Munksjö and Vinnova through BioInnovation and Knut and Alice of the Wallenberg Foundation.