China's first bioenergy research center was inaugurated on Sunday in Nanning, the capital city of southern Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, amid government's plans of new energy development to combat global energy crisis.

The research center is set up based on the national guidance on energy and grain security, and will look to cassava, sugar cane, sweet sorghum as the main sources for new energy development.

Bioenergy has good prospects in tackling energy crisis and protecting grain security and ecological environment since it has low emission and in contest with human beings for resources, said Huang Ribo, director of the research center.

China has abundant bioenergy resources, which is expected to total five billion tonnes. The tropical Guangxi has rich reserve of cassava, sugar cane, which takes up more than 65 percent of the nation's total, he said.

China's first cassava-for-alcohol fuel project, which has an annual capacity of 200,000 tonnes, was started in Beihai city of Guangxi in 2007.

The Guangxi Academy of Sciences will support the research center with research talents and facilities.

According to a report released by the Chinese Academy of Sciences on June 10, bioenergy is expected to realize commercial production on a massive scale in China and replace 30 percent of the oil imports by 2050.

(Xinhua News Agency June 15, 2009)