Taking the Podium at the Next Generation Bio-Based Chemicals Summit

In February, Myriant Technologies will participate in the Next Generation Bio-Based Chemicals Summit in San Diego. The event will bring together many of the growing list of biobased players making claims in the 3 trillion dollar world chemicals industry. By replacing oil-based chemicals and plastics intermediates, companies are able to use less energy and create less pollution.

Dr. Janice Pero, Myriant’s Senior Director of Molecular Biology and Fermentation will speak during the Pre-Summit Technical Symposium, in the designer organisms, metabolic engineering, and synthetic biology session on Monday, February 8^th. Dr. Pero has over 25 years of experience in research management and is an expert in gene regulation, focusing on the genetic engineering and molecular biology of Bacillus, E. coli, C. glutamicum and Streptomyces.

John Ellersick, Myriant’s Succinic Acids Program Manager will moderate the project development and retooling existing biorefineries session on Wednesday, February 10^th.  Mr. Ellersick has over 20 years experience in technology development and first-of-a-kind projects in the refining, chemicals, and renewable resource fields. Mr. Ellersick is Project Director for Myriant’s Succinic Acid BioRefinery, which was recently awarded up to $50MM in funding from the US Department of Energy (DOE) Biomass program.

Janice Pero and John Ellersick reflect Myriant’s commitment to a fully integrated approach throughout the research, scale-up, and commercial operation phases. Myriant, a sponsor of the Next Generation Bio-Based Chemicals Summit, is focused on manufacturing specialty chemicals from renewable feedstocks, delivering products with a smaller environmental footprint. For more information, go to www.myriant.com

Myriant Technologies LLC Selected for $50 Million Award for Succinic Acid Biorefinery Project

“Myriant Technologies LLC (as successor to BioEnergy International), a leading biotech developer and manufacturer of renewable biochemicals, has been selected by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to receive up to $50 million for its planned biobased Succinic Acid facility in Louisiana. Notably, among the 19 integrated biorefinery projects that won funding or loan guarantees, Myriant was the only award focused exclusively on biobased chemicals rather than biofuels.”

Click here for official announcement

Renewable Chemicals Reduce Petroleum Use, Waste, and Greenhouse Gas Emissions

“Renewable chemicals meet the most important environmental goals, including reducing use of petroleum and other non-renewable resources, reducing waste in landfills, and lowering greenhouse gas emissions. In a growing number of cases, these renewable chemicals are already cost competitive with fossil-resource based chemicals.”

- Brent Erickson, executive vice president of BIO (Biotechnology Industry Organization)’s Industrial and Environmental Section

Myriant Speaks at Major Biotechnology Summit

Myriant participated in the 2009 Pacific Rim Summit on Industrial Biotechnology and Bioenergy last week.

The summit was hosted by the the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), a representative of more than 1,200 biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers and related organizations across the United States and in more than 30 other nations.

Senior Vice President of Corporate Development Sam McConnell, spoke during a segment on renewable chemicals, and his presentation was broadcast live via webcast.

You can find a summary and the audio of the Renewable Chemicals segment here.

Myriant Alliance with Uhde Corporation of America, Uhde HmbH

We are proud to announce an alliance with Uhde Corporation of America and its preferred technology provider Uhde GmbH for the engineering, procurement & construction (EPC) of Myriant’s biobased Succinic Acid plants based on renewable feedstocks.

“With more than 2,000 plants to its credit, Uhde GmbH is one of the world’s leading engineering companies in the design and construction of chemical, refining and other industrial plants. “Uhde GmbH has built up special expertise in the field of biotechnology since 2004, and we are very excited about matching that expertise with Myriant’s leadership position in Succinic Acid,” stated Dr. Joachim Schulze, Head of Uhde GmbH’s BioTechnology Division.”

“Myriant’s renewable Succinic Acid offers cost competitive performance, reduced price volatility and a significantly enhanced environmental footprint as compared to petroleum-based alternatives.”

“Myriant, which has successfully piloted the Succinic Acid process previously together with Uhde, has begun production of ton-sized samples for its customers to verify commercial product specifications and quality. The company expects to begin commercial production of biobased Succinic Acid second half of 2010.”

Myriant Featured in Wall Street Journal Biochemical Profile

The Wall Street Journal featured us in an article about the emergence of the biochemical industry, counting Myriant Technologies as an industry leader in chemical production. Myriant has produced biobased Succinic Acid at the pilot level, and is currently accepting sample orders.

“Myriant has identified several ethanol plants suitable for producing plant-based succinic acid, a chemical used in spandex fibers and plastics. The company expects commercial production to begin next year.”

“The conversion of an existing ethanol plant can literally be done in a matter of weeks,” compared with two years to launch a new one, says Samuel McConnell, Senior Vice President of Corporate Development at Myriant.”

Myriant Science Advisory Board

We are proud to announce the members of our Science Advisory Board.

Our Science Advisory Board members include:

Dr. Stephen J. Benkovic, Evan Pugh Professor and Eberly Chair in Chemistry at Penn State University, and member of the National Academy of Sciences and its Institute of Medicine.

Dr. Joseph Glas, Executive Vice President and Advisory Board Chairman, Myriant.

Dr. Lonnie Ingram, Distinguished Professor, Department of Microbiology and Cell Science, University of Florida, and Director, Florida Center for Renewable Chemicals and Fuels, and member of the National Academy of Sciences.

Dr. Jan Westpheling, Professor, Department of Genetics, University of Georgia.

Dr. Huimin Zhao, Professor, Centennial Endowed Chair of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Illinois.

Successfully Piloting the Succinic Acid Process

We have has successfully piloted our biobased succinic acid process. The achievement was successfully piloting the biobased Succinic Acid process based on renewable feedstocks. This milestone shows Myriant’s ability to scale-up successfully.

“The successful piloting effort confirms that our Succinic Acid production cost will be competitive with petroleum-based commodity chemicals” – Dr. Cenan Ozmeral, Myriant’s Senior Vice President and General Manager

“Succinic Acid has been recognized by both government organizations and the chemical industry as one of the most promising biochemicals that can be produced from renewable feedstocks to replace a wide range of petroleum-based chemicals”

“Myriant’s next step in the commercialization of Succinic Acid is to produce ton-sized samples for its customers to verify product specifications and quality.”

Who We Are

We are focused on manufacturing specialty chemicals from renewable feedstocks, delivering products with a smaller environmental footprint. Our website is www.myriant.com