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Commercial Opportunities Biomass to Renewable Chemicals . National Conference October 3, 2012 . Contact: joel.stone@greenbiologics.com. Chemical Markets: Global G rowth. Fundamental shift in production economics of petrochemicals Volatile oil markets Shale gas cracking
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Commercial Opportunities Biomass to Renewable Chemicals National Conference October 3, 2012 Contact: joel.stone@greenbiologics.com
Chemical Markets: Global Growth • Fundamental shift in production economics of petrochemicals • Volatile oil markets • Shale gas cracking • Strong global demand for renewable chemicals • Supply side economics • Reduced carbon footprint • Long term shift in production infrastructure • Feedstock / crude sugars driven
Chemical Market Drivers • Macro trends drive renewable alternatives • Low carbon footprint • Consumer products that are “Green” • Technology improvements & collaborations drive renewables • Pretreatment / Sustainable sugar • Fermentation • Biocatalysts • Co-product recovery
Chemicals: Market Opportunities • Global renewable chemicals market is estimated to reach $76.16 billion in 2015* • CAGR of 12.67% from 2010 to 2015* • U.S. is the second largest segment, growing at an estimated CAGR of 5.1% to reach $17.5 billion by 2014* • Products include alcohols, organic chemicals, ketones, polymers, and others • Used for industrial, transportation, textiles, food safety, environment, communication, housing, recreation, health and other applications • *MarketsandMarkets, 2011
Chemicals: Performance and Economics Required • Must be effective and economical as conventional materials • Renewable is the differentiation point • Challenge is to close the gap According to Lux Research: “Today’s $1 billion biopolymer market to see double-digit growth in the coming years.”
Chemicals: Market Opportunities EERE_Top Value Added Chemicals from Biomass
Butanol: High Value Market Today • Derived from petroleum today • Used for paints, coatings, resins, polymers, and solvents • A direct substitute to petroleum derived butanol • Competitively priced without subsidy • $5bn butanol chemicals market • $50bn biofuels market, growing at 7.5% pa
A fermentation platform: Clostridium • Anaerobic organism can be optimized to tolerate oxygen • Fast growth compared to other anaerobes • Wide range of substrates(C5, C6, starch, etc.) • Range of product opportunities • Ability to grow in simple inexpensive media • Stability in regard to strain degeneration which offers a solid commercial platform • Transformation of commercially proven organisms
Green Biologics History • Merger between butylfuel™ and Green Biologics (2011), creating a global leader in production of renewable n-butanol by fermentation • GBL - UK based biotechnology company, VC backed, founded in 2003, focused on technology development and optimization • GBI - North America subsidiary focused on designing, owning, and operating commercial projects • Global team with proven commercial and technical expertise • Focus on $5bn chemical market with transition to $50bn biofuel market • Projects underway at pilot, demonstration and commercial scale
GB’s Leadership in Commercializing Renewable n-Butanol • Advanced technology • Feedstockflexible • Opportunities for multiple products • Ease of implementation • Low competition in growing markets
Advanced Technology: Transforming Established Science • The Clostridial ABE process was developed in Britain in early 20th century by Chaim Weizmann, later the first president of Israel • Large and growing global industry until the 40s when oil prices dropped • Still used commercially in Russia and South Africa until the 1980s • A well-understood reliable process • Petroleum-derived butanol became cheaper and production ceased Fermenters in Toronto ABE plant, 1917 Picture courtesy of City of Toronto archives South African ABE plant, circa 1950
Solventogenic Clostridium Species – attractive producers • Clostridia used in commercial scale manufacture for 100 years. • Robust • Large substrate range (C5 & C6; oligomers and polymers) • Non pathogenic or toxic • New strains are aerotolerant. • New strains not readily sporulate. • Produce acetone, butanol, ethanol, and H2 from sugars & starches
Advanced Technology: New Developments • Extensive microbial culture collection • Gram-positive bacterium, spore forming rod, non pathogenic/toxic • Produces ABE and H2 • >130 strains from South Africa, environmental & culture collections • Superior strains developed (>400 proprietary strains) • Proprietary enzymes • Advanced fermentation process • Strong IP protection
GB’s Intellectual Property • Technology assets (microbial culture collection) • Patents (core IP) • Know how (methods/skills/expertise) Feedstock Hydrolysis Strain Development Process Development Design & Engineering Gas recovery bar code Pre-treatment Genetic manipulation control Retrofit Superior Microbes Advanced Fermentation Water recycle Culture Collection New Build Hydrolysis Chemical mutagenesis Product recovery BEST™
Fermentation & Solvent Recovery Hydrolysis Feedstocks Products Existing Technology Under Development Advanced Technology: Flexible Bioprocessing Molasses Acetone H2 hydrogen capture Glycerine Butanol Hemi-cellulose Continuous seed Advanced Fermentation Saccharification Corn Starch Ethanol Hydrolysis BioJet Pre - treatment Bagasse Hydrogen Corn stover Butyric Acid BEST™ Advanced Solvent Recovery Wheat straw High value chemicals C4 platform
Fed-batch & Continuous Fermentation • Fed-batch, with BEST™ product removal, doubles solvent titres • Currently undergoing pilot scale demonstration • To be deployed for bolt-on • Continuous culture with BEST™technologyshown at high productivities (>1g/L/hr) • Bench scale complete, pilot-scale demonstration Q4 2012 • To be deployed for “bolt on”
Ease of Implementation • Large library of robust commercial production strains • Tolerate oxygen & diverse feedstock inhibitors • Stable & solvent production does not degenerate • Low by-products • High butanol: solvent ratios (>80%) • Extremely low ethanol (<2%) • Broad substrate range • Fermentation of C5 sugars allows superior performance • Wide range of monomers & dimers, cellulosic sugars • Low nutritional requirements • Fast fermentation (complete 36-48hrs: high productivity)
Reducing enzyme costs • Clostridia have much wider substrate range than yeast • Produce solvents readily from C5 and C6 sugars, sugar alcohols, sugar oligomers and even some polymers (starch, xylan, pectin) • Some solventogenic strains have cellulolytic genes. Expressing these in high producing strains • Clostridia likely able to utilize biomass feedstocks with lower enzyme loads and different enzyme mixtures
The C5 difference Complements of Dr. David Jones
Flexible Feedstocks: Biomass Opportunities Corn – $300-500/t sugar Ethanol - $800/t Sugar cane - $300/t sugar Butanol - $1800/t Relatively high-priced feedstocks fermented into relatively low value products
Flexible Feedstocks: Biomass Opportunities Corn – $300-500/t sugar Ethanol - $800/t Sugar cane - $300/t sugar Bagasse- $150/t sugar Ag Res./ MSW $50-150/t sugar Butanol - $1800/t GB enables producers to ferment low value feedstocks into high value products
Flexible Feedstocks Typical Cellulosic Composition • Use of C5 sugars key to superior performance C6 Sugars • GB’s organisms can utilize diverse cellulosic feedstocks C5 Sugars Sorted Municipal Solid Waste Corn stover- enzymatic cellulosic hydrolysis Hardwood pulp - hemicellulose fraction Sugar cane - bagasse Molasses - benchmark 35% 37% 39% 39% 35% 36%
Unique Positioning: Parallel Technology Demonstration Fast track approach allows timely commercialization Pilot Demonstration Commercial
North American Opportunities for Deployment • Leverage ethanol industry/assets • 217 ethanol plants (working/shut down) • Ethanol to integrated biorefinery • Bolt-on and retrofit distressed assets • JV investment opportunities • Opportunities with existing sugar plants • Sugar / energy beets and molasses • Sweet sorghum and energy sorghum • Leverage pulp & cellulosic industry/assets • Bolt-on and retrofit distressed assets • JV investment opportunities Multiple bolt-on opportunities 2012 Top 10 Prediction: “Ethanol producers begin switch to biobutanol and chemicals en masse”
North America Biorefinery Options • Bolt On to Existing Ethanol Asset • Ease of deployment • Value added to existing asset • Transformation to a biorefining complex • Phase 2 Addition of Cellulose conversion • Fermentation Including both C5 and C6 sugars • Proven on wide range of cellulosic feedstocks • Ability to operate on cellulose or original bolt on corn mash • Evolutionary biorefining with corn or cellulose feed
Ethanol Bolt-On Opportunity Utilizing Cellulosic Feedstocks Cellulose Scope Phase 2 Biomass Receiving and storage Pretreat to monomer sugars GBL Fermentation GBL Distillation Ethanol Butanol & Acetone GBL Solids & Evaporation GBL Butanol storage & loadout Protein solids to DDGS Thin Stillage Bolt on Scope Phase 1
Butanol– a Product of Choice • Market size ($5bn chemical market, $50bn biofuels market) • Fast global market growth for renewable n-butanol • Proven technology (pilot to commercial scale) • Profitability (ethanol $800/t versus butanol $1800/t) • Opportunity for a range of low capital solutions (bolt-on or repurpose) • Flexibility of feedstock and end product opportunities
Summary: Commercializing Renewable n-Butanol • Attractive markets • 10 billion lbs. chemical market, biofuel opportunities • GB’s technology leadership • World leader in ABE fermentation technology • Extensive microbial culture collection • Advanced fermentation process • Multiple feedstock and product opportunities • C5 & C6 sugars • Proven on wide range of cellulosic feedstock • Attractive implementation options • Process engineering designs for “bolt on” & retrofit • Demonstrated technology • Enables high return, low Capexsolutions • Know-how from working across global customer base • Effective & Economical in growing markets • .
Questions Contact: joel.stone@greenbiologics.com