CPC Corp., Taiwan and a metal research center signed a strategic alliance agreement Wednesday on the development of renewable energy technologies in an effort to promote carbon dioxide reduction and energy conservation. The agreement, which will take effect in 2011, involves joint development of biomass energy, hydrogen power and solar energy technologies over the next four years. It was signed by Shen Hung-chung, director of CPC's Refining and Manufacturing Research Institute, and Chung Tzi-chiang, deputy chief executive officer of the non-profit Metal Industries Research and Development Center (MIRDC). In response to the government's energy policy and acting on the its own development strategy, the CPC research institute set up a new division in January to develop energy technologies and expand the company's energy business. The initial goal is to accelerate development of new biomass energy technologies and promote the industry, it said. MIRDC will bring to the table its high pressure and high temperature (HPHT) equipment and technology, while CPC will contribute its techniques for the production of biomass fuel. Their first joint project will be the adoption of the MIRDC's high-performance low-cost HPHT technology to extract oil from Jatropha curcas seeds for the production of bio-diesel. CPC has 100,000 hectares of Jatropha curcas trees in Indonesia, CPC Chairman Chu Shao-hua said. The company has also authorized Taiwan researchers to study ways of extracting glucose from rice straw for use in green energy production, he said. CPC hopes that through collaboration with the MIRDC, it can speed up the pace of research and development of new energy technologies, he said. Ruling Kuomintang Legislator Ho Tsai-feng said at the signing ceremony that she hopes the strategic alliance between the two research units will help not only to advance the development of green energy technologies, but also create an industry cluster and generate more jobs. The value of Taiwan's green energy industry is expected to reach NT$1.15 trillion by 2015 and create 110,000 jobs, according to Jerry Ou, director- general of the Ministry of Economic Affairs' Bureau of Energy. 