-- FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE --
November 29, 2011
Contact: Tatiana Brailovskaya, Director of Communications, Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, www.bigleow.org; (207) 633-9633; tbrailovskaya@bigelow.org
BioProcess Algae, LLC Becomes Founding Member of Bigelow Laboratory’s Corporate Affiliate Program (CAP)
WEST BOOTHBAY HARBOR, ME -- Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences has announced that BioProcess Algae, LLC, a Portsmouth, Rhode Island-based company that designs, builds, and operates commercial scale bioreactors that enable efficient, economical cultivation of algae, has become the founding member of the Laboratory’s newly-launched Corporate Affiliate Program (CAP).
“We are extremely pleased that a national leader in producing algal biomass for human nutrition, animal feeds, and biofuels is supporting Bigelow Laboratory’s research in this way, and we’re looking forward to a very fruitful partnership, ” said Dr. Graham Shimmield, the Laboratory’s President and Executive Director. “The Corporate Affiliate Program was designed to encourage companies to enter into a formal working relationship with us, providing a single interface and road map to the Laboratory’s resources.”
“CAP enables for-profit entities to support the Laboratory’s operations via unrestricted membership fees,” added Mark Bloom, Director of Corporate Alliances and Technology Transfer at the Laboratory. “Depending on the level of financial support, CAP member companies, for example, can receive advance information regarding research projects being performed at the Laboratory, advance copies of working papers and articles produced by Laboratory researchers, access to the expertise and resources of the Laboratory, and comprehensive information on the full range of research and educational activities at the Laboratory.”
“BioProcess Algae is actively pursuing development of a wide range of sustainable bioproducts derived from microalgae,” said Tim Burns, CEO of BioProcess Algae. “Our current focus is on providing cost-competitive products to the feed and fuel industries. Since we’ve been working in partnership with Bigelow Laboratory for some time, we felt that it was important to financially show our commitment to the Laboratory’s future by becoming a CAP member.”
BioProcess Algae LLC is a joint venture among CLARCOR Inc. (NYSE: CLC), a global provider of filtration products, BioProcessH2O LLC, a wastewater purification technology company, Green Plains Renewable Energy, and the international renewable energy group NTR plc, which builds and runs green energy and resource-sustaining businesses. BioProcess Algae was created to commercialize advanced photo-bioreactor technologies for the production of high-quality, low-cost feedstocks for human nutrition, animal feed and biofuels. The company is currently running a demonstration plant at the Green Plains Renewable Energy, Inc. ethanol plant in Shenandoah, Iowa. Grower Harvester™ bioreactors have been tied directly into the plant’s CO2 exhaust gas since October 2009.
Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences is an independent, non-profit center for global ocean research, ocean science education, and technology transfer. The Laboratory’s research ranges from microbial oceanography to the large-scale biogeochemical processes that drive ocean ecosystems and global environmental conditions. A recognized leader in Maine’s emerging innovation economy, the Laboratory is spurring significant economic growth in the state through construction of a major Ocean Science and Education Campus in East Boothbay. The Laboratory’s Office of Corporate Alliances and Technology Transfer serves as a bridge between discovery science and commercialization partners. For more information about Bigelow Laboratory’s Corporate Affiliate Program, visit www.bigelow.org/catt/cap. ####