Gevo wins a judgment in latest Butamax vs Gevo dust-up
Jim Lane Gevo a winner? Not the issue, says Butamax, as the Capulets and Montagues get it on again. It’s a tennis match in which the score is never love. Scene: Verona. A public place. The Prince: Three civil brawls, bred of an airy word,
By thee, old Butamax, and Gevo, Have thrice disturb’d the quiet of our streets,
And made the Digest’s ancient citizens
setteth aside required reading of matters thermochem and RFS, to hear again, and again, and thence again your claims and counterclaims and all the pleadings that issueth, containing more commas than...
Biofuels and Biomaterials raise $1.374B in equity in past 12 months
Jim Lane 33 equity transactions, averaging $40M – who got what, for what, from whom – what’s hot now? In Florida, Biofuels Digest reported that advanced biofuels and biomaterials companies raised $1.374 B in equity financing in the past 12 months, based on deal flow reported in the Digest’s daily newsletter and online news service. Overall, the Digest reported 33 transactions, including five successful IPOs, in eight categories. The largest equity raise of the year was $227 million raised by Solazyme(SZYM) in its IPO. Other notable equity raises included $123M raised by Gevo(GEVO) and $150M...
Hack This Voice Mail: The Facts About Advanced Biofuels Capacity
Jim Lane Following a stinging WSJ editorial board critique on cellulosic biofuels, we leave a fact-filled voice mail for News Corp to hack. Meanwhile, Mascoma lands $80M and heads for scale. The Wall Street Journal editorial page writers recently published a stinging indictment of cellulosic biofuels. Bottom line: the Journal is offering the shortfall in the cellulosic biofuels pool (around 2% of the overall US Renewable Fuel Standard this year), as evidence that government mandates and subsidies do not work, and that the US government has shoveled a lot of money into advanced biofuels for nothing....
Biofuels & Biobased Earnings Roundup: Novozymes
by Jim Lane
The Top Line. In Denmark, Novozymes (Copenhagen:NZYM-B; OTC:NVZMY) reported 4% organic sales growth for the first half and a 5 percent jump in Q2 with bioenergy reporting a 14% jump. Overall, net profit grew 5% and the company affirmed its 2018 guidance. Sales dipped to DKK 7,018m from DKK 7,278m, and EBITDA was flat at DKK 2,464m, although we primarily attribute that to currency shifts.
The Big Highlights. Growth in Food & Beverages and Agriculture & Feed; Bioenergy particularly strong. Good ramp-up of recent product launches. +7% organic sales growth in emerging markets; Freshness & hygiene platform in Household Care developing according to...
Fretting Over FutureFuel
by Debra Fiakas CFA Earlier this week FutureFuel Corporation (FF: NYSE) reported financial results for the second quarter ending June 2015. Sales of the company’s biodiesel and specialty chemical products increased 53.7% to $104.6 million compared to the prior-year quarter when reported revenue was $68.0 million. The company delivered a profit as usual, but traders appeared unimpressed. The stock gapped lower on the news and two days later set a new 52-week low price. Granted net income was lower year-over-year by 30.9%, coming in at $3.8 million or $0.09 per share. A closer look...
Corn Fractionation Improving Ethanol Production
Ethanol and isobutanol producer Gevo, Inc. (GEVO: Nasdaq) is installing equipment in its Luverne, Minnesota plant to improve efficiency in corn processing. The company is leasing a proprietary corn fractionation or slicing process developed Shockwave, LLC based in DesMoines, Iowa. The new equipment is intended to increase by-product output, including feed protein products and food-grade corn oil. With sales of more valuable by-products Gevo expects to improve overall profit margins. Shareholders can expect to see results after the first quarter 2019, when the equipment installation is expected to be complete.
Shockwave keeps a low profile with no corporate website and no one to answer phone calls. However,...
The Return of Advanced Biofuels
by Jim Lane
For several years now we have seen a significant number of players pivoting from biofuels towards smaller but higher-value markets in chemicals, nutrition, nutraceuticals, pharma, materials, flavorings, fragrances, cosmetics and more. We’ve reported on the proliferation of applications both in the Digest and in What’s Nuu? and indeed there’s been so much that’s Nuu, it’s been dizzying at times with all the spinning and twirling.
Capital costs and policy uncertainty have played their part, but the foot on the pedal for many has been oil prices. The scale of operations to compete with oil prices in the 2014-2017 period...
Gevo Raises Money After Win At Supreme Court
Jim Lane Following just one day after a big win in the Supreme Court and a corporate update last week, Gevo (GEVO) announced that it intends to offer and sell, subject to market and other conditions, common stock units. Each common stock unit will consist of one share of common stock, Series A warrants to purchase a certain number of shares of common stock and Series B warrants to purchase a certain number of shares of common stock. The units are to be sold by Gevo subject to market and other conditions in an underwritten public offering. Update!...
Three Renewables Companies: No Pain, No Gain
Jim Lane In California and Canada this week, BioAmber (BIOA), Pacific Ethanol (PEIX) and the former Solazyme (SZYM) reported their Q4 and year-end results, providing between them a fascinating look at the evolution in the fuels, renewable chemicals, specialty products and nutrition that make up the advanced bioeconomy. In advanced nutrition The most spectacular news of the week belonged to TerraVia (formerly SolaZyme), which landed a 5-year, $200 million “baseload” offtake deal with Unilever, which provides a huge lift for investors and validates the economics and performance of the company’s first commercial plant, which it operates in a...
Praj Licenses Gevo’s Isobutanol Technology
Jim Lane In Colorado, Gevo (GEVO) announced that Praj Industries Limited has signed a memorandum of understanding to become a Gevo licensee for producing renewable isobutanol at sugar-based ethanol plants. Under the MOU, Praj will undertake to license up to 250 million gallons of isobutanol capacity for sugar-based ethanol plants over the next ten years. Gevo will market the isobutanol produced by Praj’s sub-licensees. Praj will also contribute process engineering and equipment services to expand isobutanol capacity at Gevo’s plant in Luverne, Minn, as well as to improve yields and optimize energy consumption at the facility. “Praj has...
Corn Ethanol On The Chopping Block: Can Green Plains Escape?
by Debra Fiakas CFA Legislation introduced in the U.S. Senate has put corn-based ethanol fuel on the chopping block. The bill’s title says it all – Corn Ethanol Mandate Elimination Act of 2013. Put into place in 2005, the Renewable Fuel Standard required refiners and blenders to use 16.6 billion gallons of renewable fuel in 2013, of which approximately 13 billion gallons will be met through ethanol made from corn. Support for the legislation is coming from all quarters. It is not surprising that poultry, dairy and beef people would think this is a good idea,...
Green Plains Bets on Ethanol Recovery
by Debra Fiakas CFA Last week the Chief Executive Officer of Green Plains Renewable Energy, Inc. (GPRE: Nasdaq), Todd Becker, revealed during conference calls following its quarter earnings report that the company has been in discussions to sell ethanol to industrial users in Mexico. It is news that could be music to shareholders ears. U.S. storage tanks are brim full of ethanol as producers like Green Plains stock pile inventories waiting for better selling prices. Green Plains has made claims to Mexico sales before, but has never revealed customer names or volumes. None were named...
Neste Renewable Diesel Capacity Hits 2 Million Tons But Feedstock Constraints Loom
Finland’s Neste Oil Corporation
(NEF: F)
brought its fourth renewable diesel plant on-line in September 2011,
earning bragging rights to the world’s largest facility of its
kind. Located at the Port of Rotterdam, the plant has the
capacity to produce 800,000 metric tons of renewable diesel that
Neste brands NExBTL and claims is the “cleanest and highest-quality
renewable diesel on the market today.” Along with Neste’s
three other plants already in operation in Finland and Singapore the
fourth plant in Denmark brings Neste’s total production capacity to
2.0 million metric tons per year.
Corn Ethanol Emissions Savings Skyrocket
Jim Lane In Washington, an explosive new peer-reviewed report from ICF found that greenhouse gas emission reductions from typical corn-based ethanol production have soared to 43 percent compared to 2005-era gasoline. The report projects that by 2022, corn-based ethanol will achieve a 50 percent reduction, and could reach “76 percent in 2022 if there is more widespread adoption of optimal crop production and biorefinery efficiency.” The report, issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, based its revolutionary emissions math on a November 2014 study by researchers at Iowa State University, which found that farmers around the world have...
Dyadic: a 5-Minute Guide
Jim Lane Dyadic International, Inc. is a global biotechnology company that uses its patented and proprietary technologies to conduct research, development and commercial activities for the discovery, development, manufacture and sale of products and solutions for the bioenergy, industrial enzyme and biopharmaceutical industries. Address: 140 Intracoastal Pointe Drive Suite 404 Jupiter, Florida 33477 Year founded: 1979 Stock Ticker: Pink Sheets: DYAI Type of Technology(ies) Patented and proprietary C1 platform technology based on a unique fungal microorganism which is programmable and scalable in producing enzymes and proteins in large quantities ...
Trump Administration Flip-Flops On Oil Refinery Waivers Again, Farm Groups Protest Again
by Jim Lane
In Washington, what must have become a weary if vigilant posse of the nation’s biofuel and farm advocates are out on the hustings again this week, over a fresh attack on the US Renewable Fuel Standard, this one led by officials in the Trump Administration, if a story reported by Bloomberg stands up against scrutiny.
What has been described as a “misinformation campaign spearheaded by Senator Ted Cruz” is seeking to overturn a unanimous court decision that would halt the Environmental Protection Agency’s abuse of Small Refinery Exemptions (SREs) under the Renewable Fuel Standard.
The backstory
In a unanimous panel, the...
