VISALIA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Edeniq, a biomaterials and sustainable fuels company, today announced that the company has secured a $3.9 million grant from the California Energy Commission (CEC), supporting the company’s efforts to create tomorrow’s biofuel by converting plant material into clean, renewable energy.
The grant is part of California’s Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program, which provides funding for the development of new, California-based biofuel production facilities. The grant will help fund further developments and innovative enhancements to Edeniq's proprietary cellulosic ethanol technology, enabling the low capital cost addition of cellulosic ethanol production to corn-based ethanol plants. These enhancements will be scaled to production levels at Edeniq's cellulosic ethanol pilot plant, constructed in partnership with Logos Technologies Inc. under a $25 million program funded 80% by the US Department of Energy. The pilot plant in Visalia, California has the capacity to convert two dry tons per day of feedstock into cellulosic sugars and 50,000 gallons per year cellulosic ethanol.
“California is working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as well as demand for petroleum. Edeniq has the same goals at the state, national and global levels,” said Brian Thome, President and CEO of Edeniq. “The CEC has recognized Edeniq for our ongoing innovation, awarding a grant that allows us to continue expanding both in-lab innovation and commercialization programs. Our patented technology and practical breakthroughs meet the needs of ethanol producers in this rapidly-evolving biofuels sector.”
By leveraging current industry assets - corn ethanol facilities and feedstock - Edeniq is helping evolve the facilities into integrated biorefineries with cellulosic feedstock capabilities. Edeniq’s partnerships with facilities across California and the United States create the potential for hundreds of millions of gallons of cellulosic ethanol production in the near future.
Edeniq’s proprietary and easy-to-integrate products increase ethanol yield and output at existing corn ethanol facilities, allowing customers to use less corn and begin the transition to cellulosic feedstock with minimum capital costs. Edeniq’s patented Cellunator™ mills corn and other non-food plant materials into small, uniform pieces of feedstock that can be easily converted to sugars for conversion into cellulosic ethanol and other renewable products and materials, and the company’s Pathway™ enzymes help break down cellulosic materials, including those that are already part of existing ethanol processes. The Edeniq systems can be added as bolt-on technologies to existing corn ethanol facilities or integrated into new cellulosic ethanol processing facilities.
Edeniq recently announced the company has raised over $32 million in additional funding and has entered into a partnership with Flint Hills Resources Renewables.
About Edeniq
Edeniq integrates patented mechanical and biological processes to efficiently and cost-effectively break down plant material into sugars that become sustainable fuels and/or industrial materials. Edeniq’s patent portfolio includes innovation in biological catalysts plus mechanical processes that helps meet the industry-wide challenge of taking today’s plant-based resources into future markets and applications. Headquartered in Visalia, CA, with locations in Omaha, Nebraska and the state of Sao Paolo in Brazil, Edeniq is funded by such leading investors as Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Flint Hills Renewables, The Westly Group and Cyrus Capital.