Amyris to get US$82 million funding from Total over three years

U.S.-based biochemicals and biofuels company Amyris has signed an amendment to its existing technology collaboration agreement with France’s Total that will result in Total investing US$82 million for the deployment of Biofene, Amyris’ renewable farnesene, for the production of renewable diesel and jet fuel.
Total will invest US$30 million during the third quarter of 2012; the balance of the allocated funding will be spread over two years.
Upon completion of the research and development program, Total and Amyris intend to form a joint venture company that would have exclusive rights to produce and market renewable diesel and/or jet fuel, as well as non-exclusive rights to other specialty products.
Amyris is using its industrial synthetic biology platform to design microbes, primarily yeast, and use them as living factories in established fermentation processes to convert plant-sourced sugars into renewable chemical and transportation fuel products.
Amyris operates laboratories and a pilot plant in California as well as a pilot plant and demonstration facility in Brazil. Amyris has been scaling its Biofene production through various production arrangements and expects to operate its first dedicated commercial scale facility in Brazil by early 2013.