BIO Calls for a Range of Policies to Support US Biorefinery Commercialization; Need For Federal Support in Financing

5 March 2010

The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) has called for sustained, consistent and diverse federal support to encourage commercial development of a full range of innovative bio-based technologies.

Public policy should extend support to all biorefinery projects, BIO says, because production of bio-based products and green chemicals at integrated biorefineries holds the same potential to generate jobs, boost economic growth, and lower greenhouse gas emissions as advanced biofuels.

Building biorefineries to apply advanced biotechnology applications for advanced biofuels and bio-based products can contribute to economic growth in the very near term and establish a unique base for sustainable economic growth in the long term. Pilot and demonstration biorefineries are currently being built across the United States to take advantage of local resources and feedstocks - and creating local jobs. However, we do need more robust federal policies for loan guarantees if we’re to realize the full job potential of commercial-scale biorefinery construction

—Brent Erickson, executive vice president for BIO’s Industrial and Environmental Section

In a roundtable discussion hosted by BIO, representatives from three advanced biofuel and bio-based chemical companies—Coskata, Inc.; ZeaChem, Inc.; and Myriant Technologies—noted that while their technologies were proceeding to the commercial stage, private sector financing is still basically on the sidelines, and Federal support in terms of policy and financing is still critical.

When you build a refinery, you are creating hundreds of jobs. We need wind, we need solar, but you don’t need 500 people looking up at a wind turbine turning. This [biorefineries] is probably the biggest opportunity that exists today for reducing dependence on oil, growing jobs, and growing the economy.

...At some point the greed factor starts to set in, and we are seeing more interest coming [from private sector financing] because of the returns that these projects can deliver. Reducing technology risk is necessary; that’s why we need the DOE loan guarantee program to work in conjunction with private financing. They are loans, not grants, not handouts.

—Wes Bolsen, Chief Marketing Officer & VP, Government Affairs, Coskata

Certainly the Federal dollars are significant; the policy side is equally important as well. These are long-term projects that require significant capital. As we go out into the private sector for financing...we need the hand up, not a handout when it comes to Federal dollars. Ultimately, we all need to be successful in being competitive with petroleum.

—Carrie Atiyeh, Director of Public Affairs, ZeaChem

We also share the excitement of others that there is a lot of money starting to free up, looking for robust returns. We are not banking on a green premium; that’s why we have transitioned to high-value chemicals and intermediates...We are speeding along with our facility, but certainly we do need government support to help transcend through the valley of death over the next few years.

— Corrine Young, Director of Government Affairs, Myriant Technologies