As part of its 2012 financial announcement, Amyris Inc. provided an update of operations at its commercial-scale renewable farnesene production facility in Brazil. According to John Melo, Amyris president and CEO, the company is on track to achieve positive cash flow in 2014.

Amryris began operations at the facility in December, and announced the first shipment of product in early 2013. “We have been operating the plant for nearly two months, producing on-spec product from multiple tanks without contamination or any other significant problem to date,” Melo said.

According to Melo, Amyris is currently planning to switch feedstock streams from a blend of raw sugar crystals and molasses to a blend of concentrated cane syrup as the Brazilian sugarcane harvest begins this spring. “We also plan to upgrade our newest farnesene producing strains to take advantage of their improved performance,” he continued. “Both of these actions will support our goal of achieving stable, predictable low-cost production.”

Amyris reported aggregate revenue of $5.9 million for the final quarter of 2012, a reduction when compared to the $41.5 million reported for the same three months of 2011. The company attributes the decline to its planned transition out of the ethanol and ethanol-blended gasoline business, which was completed during the third quarter of 2012. Of the $5.9 million, $3 million was related to renewable product sales, compared to $700,000 for the same period of 2011.

Aggregate revenues for the year ended Dec. 31 were $73.7 million, versus $147 million for the year prior. Renewable product sales were $10.8 million for 2012, compared to $800,000 for 2011.