Solazyme Bunge Renewable Oils receives project financing from BNDES

Solazyme Bunge Renewable Oils, a joint venture between Solazyme, Inc., a renewable oil and bioproducts company, and Bunge Global Innovation LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bunge Ltd., has received approval from the Brazilian Development Bank ((Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Economico e Social or BNDES) for project financing in the form of a loan amounting to BRL$245,699,000 (USD$120 million). The funding from the BNDES will support Solazyme Bunge Renewable Oils’ first commercial-scale renewable oil production facility in Brazil. The facility is being constructed adjacent to Bunge’s Moema sugarcane mill in São Paulo state.
“Solazyme Bunge Renewable Oils is committed to commercializing innovative tailored oil technology in Brazil. This financing from BNDES highlights the significant value that the joint venture can bring to the Brazilian economy,” said Rogerio Manso, Chief Commercialization Officer of Solazyme.
Solazyme Bunge Renewable Oils’ project was chosen by the PAISS program, a BNDES/FINEP joint plan, which is aimed at stimulating industrial technological innovation in the sugar-based energy and chemical sectors.
Solazyme Bunge Renewable Oils broke ground in June 2012 and the facility, which is expected to be operational in the last quarter of this year, will service the renewable chemical and fuel industries within the Brazilian marketplace. The initial annual capacity target is 100,000 metric tons per year of renewable oil production.
Solazyme, Inc. is a leading renewable oil and bioproducts company whose technology uses algae in the production of oils and biomaterials in standard fermentation. The company is headquartered in South San Francisco, U.S.A. 
Bunge Ltd. is a major global agribusiness and food company, which operates in more than 40 countries and employs around 35,000 employees. (January 16, 2013)