Amyris heads for commercialization of drop-in green diesel in 2011 with opening of demo plant in Brazil

In Brazil, Amyris Biotechnologies announced the opening of a demonstration-scale facility in Campinas that will execute in-country scale-up, demonstration and optimization of all Amyris fuels and chemicals manufacturing processes.

Amyris applies its synthetic biology technology to convert sugar cane into a range of high value renewable fuels and chemicals.

The Amyris Renewable Products Demonstration Facility includes both pilot plant and demonstration scale operations, and complements the pilot plants that Amyris opened in Emeryville, Calif. in 2008 and in Campinas earlier this year. Amyris now has fully integrated capabilities to move technology from lab to pilot to demonstration and finally to commercial scale, with tested continuity of results throughout the chain. The new demonstration equipment allows for final validation of commercial equipment design and manufacturing processes, and produces 10,000 gallons of renewable fuels and chemicals under “full-scale conditions”.

Amyris is headed for commercialization in 2011 at through the purchase of one, or possibly, two ethanol plants, according to Amyris officials. ,The company will then expand commencing in 2012 to a new model, where sugar mill owners can add Amyris technology to their processes for value-added operations.

In the new “capital light” model, Amyris will partner with a mill and provide its technology through an off take agreement – not a licensing agreement. Amyris Brasil will provide mill owners with yeast strains, production processes and engineering design to produce Amyris products. The mill owner will provide capital to convert mill to produce Amyris products. Amyris Brasil will, then purchase Amyris products from mill owners at contracted price and distribute product directly to customers.

Amyris’s initial products include a drop-in renewable diesel fuel with performance properties that equal or exceed those of petroleum-sourced fuels and currently available biofuels. Amyris expects to produce renewable chemicals for a variety of consumer products and industrial applications currently dependent on petrochemical components.

Amyris applies synthetic biology to alter the metabolic pathways of microorganisms to engineer “living factories” that transform sugar into any one of 50,000 different molecules used in a wide variety of energy, pharmaceutical and chemical applications.

The company’s renewable diesel fuel was reghistered with the EPA earlier this year.

Free Subscription to the Daily Biofuels Digest e-newsletter

Related Stories

Amyris green diesel registered for sale by EPA; first drop-in fuel from biomassto receive EPA approval

In California, Amyris announced that the US EPA has registered Amyris' renewable diesel fuel for commercial sale. The EPA's registration of Amyris fuel is the first time that first "green diesel" o...

Amyris raises $24.7 million in first tranche of Series C funding; aims for $62 million in total for commercialization drive

In California, Amyris Biotechnologies said in an SEC filing that it has raised $24.7 million in Series C financing after offering $62 million in shares last July to investors.  The $24.7 million repr...

Sapphire Energy says algae commercialization accelerating; expects to double commercial outut in 2011 to 1 million gallons of jet fuel and green diesel

In California, Sapphire Energy said the pace of algae commercialization is increasing and that it will reach commercial scale by 2011, and producing 1 Mgy of diesel and jet fuel from algae that year, ...

Amyris expects to produce 200 Mgy of synthetic low-emission via Brazil JV by 2011

In Brazil, synthetic biofuel producer Amyris said that it expects to produce 200 Mgy of synthetic, biomass-based diesel by 2011 from its joint ventures in Brazil. The company's biorefineries, based on...

REII to convert rice straw, crop residues to green diesel: demo project in Ohio

In Ohio, the Renewable Energy Institute International said that it will partner with Kenworth Truck maker PACCAR and Caterpillar in a $5 million investment to convert rice straw and other crop residue...

Brazil to open first commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol plant by 2011

In Brazil, Sugar Cane Technology Center research leaders said that Brazil would enter the cellulosic ethanol industry at the commercial-scale with a first plant opened as soon as 2011. The proposed pl...