BioRefineries Blog

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. Bain Capital has completed a significant equity investment in EcoCeres, an innovative biorefinery company with leading R&D capabilities. The transaction follows Series A investment in EcoCeres from Kerogen Capital in February 2022. Press release: " Bain Capital completes significant equity investment in EcoCeres ", 12/01/2023. Figure 1. EcoCeres HVO plant EcoCeres is an Asia-based advanced biorefinery platform with industrial-scale production capacity that converts waste-based biomass into a wide spectrum of biofuels, biochemicals and biomaterials. The Company is one of the few players in the world to produce commercialized HVO (Hydro-treated Vegetable Oil), SAF (Sustainable Aviation Fuel), and cellulosic ethanol. It has a dedicated R&D team with strong chemical engineering backgrounds, and commercially available combined capacity of 300,000 tons per annum of HVO and SAF in operation. Through the implementation of core proprietary technolo...

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. Thai Union has announced that its Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) Fund has joined other strategic and financial partners investing in France-based Algama’s 13 M€ Series A fundraising round. The funding in this round will be used to accelerate commercialization of innovations, development of new applications, and setup of a new 10,000 m2 biorefinery in Liege (Belgium). Press release: " Thai Union Corporate Venture Fund invests in French algae ingredients startup ", 11/01/2023. Figure 1. Vegan tuna and smoked salmon alternatives developed by Algama (Credit: Algama) Founded in 2013, Algama leverages its algae innovation platform to offer co-development and industrialization of algae-based ingredients for F&B players looking to replace animal protein and / or fortify their products. Algama’s flagship product, the Tamalga® range of ingredients, replaces eggs in many industrial applications, particularly in bakery and pastry. The investment in Algam...

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. LANXESS and TotalEnergies have entered into a cooperation on the supply of biocircular styrene. The raw material used by TotalEnergies is based on tall oil, which is derived from a tree resin and is a by-product of pulp production. LANXESS uses the styrene to produce sustainable ion exchange resins. These products are applied primarily in the treatment of wastewater and chemical process flows as well as in the food industry. Press release: " LANXESS and TotalEnergies to cooperate on sustainable styrene ", 04/01/2023. The sustainable origin of the styrene is certified in accordance with the mass balance approach of the ISCC PLUS standard. Under mass balance approach, the certified and non-certified materials are mixed physically, but kept separately on a book keeping basis. This method allows companies to document and track the sustainable materials through the complex production process and ensures the full tracibility through the entire supply c...

Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF. Wood will work with CuanTec Ltd. (Scottish circular economy business) to develop cutting edge separation facilities that will process shellfish waste to extract chitin, a naturally occurring, 100% compostable biopolymer with a wide range of applications in the pharmaceutical, cosmetics and food industries. Press release: " Wood and CuanTec to accelerate circular economy solutions in the UK ", 15/12/2022. The contract will see Wood provide the front-end engineering design (FEED) to deliver modifications for CuanTec’s newly acquired separation plant in Glenrothes (Scotland), followed by the expansion of that facility. Wood will then continue to provide the FEED, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of additional new production facilities in the UK and globally which will enable mass production of CuanTec’s ultra-pure chitin and chitin-based products. CuanTec’s proprietary technologies use a novel, scientifically proven method to process s...