Covestro (Leverkusen, Germany; www.covestro.com ), one of the world’s largest polymer companies, and biotechnology company Genomatica have formed a partnership to research and develop high-performance materials based on renewable feedstocks. Both companies aim to reduce the use of fossil-based resources. Using carbon from plants would help reduce CO2 emissions and close the carbon loop as another step toward a circular economy.
This long-term partnership involves teams from both companies working together to drive commercially focused innovations. Genomatica will deploy its strengths in developing industrial-scale bioprocesses to produce widely used chemicals. Covestro complements the collaboration with strong know-how in chemical process technology and application development.
“The market is showing increasing interest in products based on renewable raw materials,” said Dr. Klaus Schäfer, Chief Technology Officer of Covestro. “Being able to increasingly derive key materials from biomass is essential for making our industry less dependent on fossil raw materials and market fluctuations. With this, we are pursuing our vision of making the world a brighter place.”
Christophe Schilling, CEO of US-based Genomatica, added: “We look forward to supporting Covestro in its efforts and providing our expertise in harnessing the power of biotechnology to bring much-needed change to many segments of the chemical industry.”
Genomatica was the recipient of the 2013 Kirkpatrick Chemical Engineering Achievement Award for its process to produce bio-based butanediol