(EnergyAsia, January 29, Tuesday) — BP has signed a series of agreements to increase its investments in China covering clean energy research, a wind power project and chemical production.

BP signed an agreement to undertake a feasibility study to jointly build a Clean Energy Commercialisation Centre (CECC) with China Academy of Sciences (CAS). This follows a Memorandum of Understanding signed in Shanghai last August.

Under the agreement, CECC will integrate clean energy related technologies like coal gasification, coal-to-liquids, coal-to-chemical, carbon capture and storage, coalbed methane and underground gasification from CAS institutes and other organisations into integrated feedstock manufacturing, product distribution systems and polygeneration complexes.

The CECC would also serve as an international platform to foster collaboration among research institutes, enterprises and other institutions to improve indigenous Chinese innovation capabilities and market applications in areas such as clean coal conversion, zero emission and carbon capture and storage.

The partners have agreed that the CECC would act as a cooperation platform between the two parties in order to support the development of the Sino-UK clean coal conversion related near zero emission initiative, including technology development and demonstration projects.

BP and CAS believe that the commercialisation of clean coal conversion and other clean energy conversion technologies will make an important contribution to China’s future energy security whilst also helping to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and address China’s future energy security and environmental sustainability issues.

A full-time working team drawn from both BP and CAS has been established to progress the feasibility study and the joint venture contract, with the aim of establishing the CECC joint venture by the end of 2008.

In a framework agreement with Beijing Tianrun New Energy Investment Co, a subsidiary of Goldwind Science and Technology Co Ltd, both companies will jointly invest in three 49.5-megawatt wind power plants near Bayan Obo in Inner Mongolia. They have agreed to explore further wind power investment opportunities in that region.

BP has also signed a MoU with Sinopec to add a new 650,000-tonne acetic acid plant at their YARACO joint venture in Chongqing in southwest China. The plant is expected to be operational in 2011 and will increase production capacity to more than one million tonnes per year, making it one of the largest acetic production sites in China.

In Beijing recently, British Prime Pinister Gordon Brown met with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao to witness the signing of agreements.

Gary Dirks, BP President of Asia Pacific and China, said: “BP’s total investment in China has exceeded US$4 billion since our arrival some three decades ago.

“Our commercial and social investments serve a clear purpose, which is to provide quality products and materials to help Chinese consumers improve their quality of life and protect the well-being of the environment. I am pleased that BP is continuing to take steps in delivering this commitment.”