Mitsubishi, SBC reaffirm commitment to develop algae for industrial use

KUCHING: The Sarawak Biodiversity Centre ( SBC) recently received a visit from Genichi Ichikawa, the new chief executive in Malaysia and general manager of Mitsubishi Corporation Kuala Lumpur Branch.

He was accompanied by former chief executive in Malaysia and general manager of Kuala Lumpur Branch Kenji Ohta. Ohta, who is currently the senior vice president and general manager of Energy Business Group CEO Office, Mitsubishi Tokyo introduced Ichikawa to the team at SBC and Sarawak Biodiversity Council chairman Tan Sri Datuk Amar Wilson Baya Dandot.

The centre signed a collaborative agreement with Mitsubishi Corporation in 2012 at the BioMalaysia Conference in Kuala Lumpur, kicking off the first phase of exploration of diverse algae biodiversity in Sarawak, recording a total of 807 samples of algae collected from both freshwater and marine environments throughout Sarawak, according to a press statement.

The second phase between 2014 and 2016 identified and isolated algae strains based on their utilisation.

“This led to the current phase three ( 2016-2018) with the construction of a large scale (1,000m2) outdoor photobioreactor ( PBR) facility in SBC to cultivate selected algae strains which is nearing completion,” the statement said.

“This one- of-its kind algae culture facility is specially constructed to test the growth performance of specific algae species before they are considered for commercial applications,” the statement added.

The recent visit by Ichikawa marked the commitment of Mitsubishi Corporation and SBC to develop future applications of algae found in Sarawak for aquaculture, nutraceuticals, as well as, alternative source for biofuels.