Renewable oil plant begins commercial production in Brazil
Source: Solazyme Inc.
June 3, 2014
BY Ron Kotrba
Solazyme Inc. announced in late May that its joint venture with Bunge Global Innovation LLC has begun commercial production at the Solazyme Bunge Renewable Oils plant in Brazil, constructed adjacent to Bunge’s Moema sugarcane mill in São Paulo state. The facility, based on a sugar-to-oils platform, is producing renewable oil and Encapso, a trademarked encapsulated lubricant. Solazyme says production is continuing and is expected to reach nameplate capacity within the next 12 to 18 months.
“With production underway at the Solazyme Bunge Renewable Oils plant, Solazyme is manufacturing products at three large-scale facilities, including our 2,000 metric ton per year (MT/year) integrated facility in Peoria, Ill., the 20,000 MT/year Iowa facilities in Clinton/Galva and the 100,000 MT/year facility in Brazil,” said Jonathan Wolfson, CEO of Solazyme. “Continued progress at the recently completed adjoining co-gen facility has resulted in more reliable power and steam, enabling startup of commercial operations and production of our first commercially saleable product. We are truly excited to have begun manufacturing operations at our joint venture’s flagship facility in Brazil.”
Advertisement
“The start of production at the Solazyme Bunge Renewable Oils plant is an important milestone for this joint venture,” said Ben Pearcy, the managing director of sugar and bioenergy at Bunge Ltd. “We’re proud of the work we have done with our partner Solazyme in bringing the world's first built-for-purpose renewable oil plant on line. We remain committed to the success of the joint venture and see significant market opportunities that we can address together.”
Advertisement
Related Stories
U.S. operable biofuel capacity in February was unchanged from the previous month, according to data released by the U.S. EIA on April 30. Feedstock consumption for February was down when compared to both January 2025 and February 2024.
CARB on April 4 released a third set of proposed changes to the state’s LCFS. More than 80 public comments were filed ahead of an April 21 deadline, including those filed by representatives of the ethanol, biobased diesel and biogas industries.
The USDA on April 14 announced the cancellation of its Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program. Select projects that meet certain requirements may continue under a new Advancing Markets for Producers initiative.
The USDA reduced its outlook for 2024-’25 soybean oil use in biofuel production in its latest World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report, released April 10. The outlook for soybean oil pricing was revised up.
BDI-BioEnergy International has signed a contract with Ghent Renewables BV to begin the construction of a pioneering biofuel feedstock refinery plant. Construction is underway and the facility is expected to be operational by the end of 2025.
Upcoming Events
