SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - (Business Wire) Solazyme, Inc., has been selected by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to provide 1,500 gallons of the world’s first 100% algae derived jet fuel for testing and certification by the U.S. Navy. Solazyme is the renewable oil production company and leader in algal synthetic biology, who earlier this month was awarded a separate Navy contract to provide R&D and delivery of over 20,000 gallons of renewable algae derived F-76 Naval distillate fuel for use in Navy ships. In fulfillment of the jet fuel contract, Solazyme will utilize its innovative large-scale algal renewable oil production process in conjunction with renewable jet fuel processing technology from Honeywell’s UOP. Together they will provide renewable jet fuel for testing and fuel certification to confirm it meets all military specifications and functional requirements. The contract calls for delivery of 1500 gallons of SolaHRJET-5™ renewable algae derived jet fuel to the Navy for compatibility testing next year. Solazyme’s renewable SolaHRJET-5™ is designed to meet all of the requirements for Naval renewable aviation fuel. This agreement between Solazyme and the DoD comes almost a year after Solazyme announced making the world’s first 100% algae derived jet fuel. Solazyme’s algal-aviation fuel, as analyzed in September 2008 by the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), one of the nation’s leading fuel analytical laboratories, passed all eleven of the key specifications tested in order to meet the ASTM D1655 standard for Aviation Turbine Fuel. The tested specifications included the key measurements for density, thermal oxidative stability, flashpoint, freezing point, distillation and viscosity among others.
“Fuels made with our leading algal technology reduce greenhouse gas emissions by over 85% versus standard petroleum based fuels. We are honored to be working with the U.S. Navy to make one of the world’s newest and cleanest fuel through this contract for large scale delivery and testing of renewable advanced biofuels that meet the military’s demanding specifications for renewable jet fuel,” said Jonathan Wolfson, chief executive officer of Solazyme. “Since producing the world’s first algae derived jet fuel in September 2008, we have focused our research on developing a process to scale production at a commercial level while driving down costs.”
“The Navy, the Defense Energy Support Center, the Defense Logistics Agency and the entire Department of Defense, have taken the lead in finding green alternatives to current petroleum based jet fuels to address both the national energy security needs of our country and the environmental challenges facing our planet,” Wolfson added.
Solazyme’s technology will help the DoD reduce its carbon footprint, combat global climate change and lead in the development of clean and renewable energy sources. Reducing our dependence on foreign oil is a national security imperative, and Solazyme’s technology focuses on producing an abundant, domestic and renewable source for oil and fuels. Solazyme has already produced Soladiesel® diesel fuels that meet ASTM, EU, and certain military specifications, and recently signed an additional contract with the Department of Defense to supply Soladiesel®F-76 renewable F-76 fuel which is a naval distillate fuel used in ships.
About Solazyme:
Solazyme, Inc. is a renewable oil and bioproducts company and the leader in algal biotechnology. Founded in 2003 and headquartered in South San Francisco, Solazyme’s unique technology allows algae to produce oil and biomaterials in standard fermentation facilities quickly, efficiently and at large scale. These natural oils and biomaterials are tailored not only for fuel production, but also as replacements for fossil-derived petroleum and a variety of natural plant oils and compounds, making them useful in a wide range of products: from oleochemicals, to cosmetics, to foods. Solazyme’s oils and fuels provide compelling solutions to increasingly complex issues of fuel scarcity, energy security and environmental impact while fitting cleanly into the pre-existing multi-trillion dollar fuel infrastructure. Solazyme’s investors among others include Braemar Energy Ventures, Harris & Harris Group, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Roda Group, and Vantage Point Venture Partners. For more information, please visit our website: http://www.solazyme.com.
Solazyme
Genet Garamendi, 650-963-5228 (CA)
ggaramendi@solazyme.com
or
David Di Martino, 202-247-7271 (DC)
dd@bluelinesc.com
or
Leah Hardesty, 415-633-3204 (PR)
lhardesty@peppercom.com
