20 January 2012
Overview
Genomantica and Novamont
have signed a definitive agreement
establishing a joint venture (JV) for
the first industrial plant in Europe
producing Butanediol (BDO)
directly from renewable feedstocks
Shareholders in the new joint venture
Novamont will have a majority of the equity in the JV,
and Genomatica a minority interest.
Production facility details
Novamont, a leading producer of biodegradable bioplastics,
will consume the BDO for its own internal use to meet
the increasing demand for its biopolymer products
that incorporates BDO as a key monomer.
Under the agreement,
Novamont is converting an existing facility in Adria , Italy
to use Genomatica's BDO process.
Novamont is financing the plant conversion and
will operate the plant, which is expected to have the
production capacity of approximatly
40 million pounds per year
Initial production is expected in 2013
Novamont is committed to purchase all of the output from
the plant, while Genomatica may purchase a portion at its
discretion to support further market development
This agreement also comtemplates Novamont building and
operating a second BDO plant using Genomatica's process,
which is expected to use biomass sugars as
the renewable feedstock
Novamont
* Genomatica's BDO process provides Novamont with
BDO made from renewable feedstocks, which is consistent with
Novamont's business strategy to use more
bio-based raw materials in Novamont's biopolymer products
* Genomatica's BDO is the exact same chemical
Novamont has been using, and is the direct equivalent of
petroleum-based BDO but with a smaller environmental footprint.
Genomatica
* Genomatica's process technologies enable a new approach to
chemical production- smaller-scale, capital-efficient manufacturing
from renewable feedstocks to fullfil customer needs across
the value chain
* Novamont is a leader in one of the most rapidly-growing
biopolymer segments of the BDO market and
has demonstrated its ability to accelarate commercialization of
innovative polymers, along with its commitments to
sustainable development.
