Algae Biomass Organization

www.algaebiomass.org

507-765-2134 

Algae Industry Project Book 

2013 

Why Algae? Algae Fuels, Feed and More 

Algae have the power to simulta- Algae are a renewable source of dropneously put fuels in our vehicles, in fuels, feed, fertilzer, nutritional oils 

recycle CO2, provide nutrition for and pharmaceuticals. They can proanimals and people and create jobs vide waste water treatment other refor millions of Americans. mediation services. New applications 

are constantly being discovered. 
 

Renewable Fuels
 

Algae
 Sustainable Food and Feed 

Domestic Jobs 

Energy Security 

The Algae Industry in the United States 

Billions of dollars are being invested in the research and development of algae-based technologies. The focus of today’s algae industry is on bringing the advances of science and 

technology for the production of algae products into the marketplace. These efforts are 

proceeding quickly, primarily driven by those that recognize algae’s high per-acre-yield 

and its suitability for making a variety of different products, from the small volume/high 

value commodities, like chemicals and nutraceuticals, to the large volume commodities 

such as fuels and feeds. 

The Technology 

Algae can be grown commercially in a variety of ways, from open ponds to enclosed photobioreactors, or from hybrid systems that combine various methods. Simply put, there is 

no one single way to grow algae at commercial scale, and this versatility is one of algae’s 

strengths. 

Algae can also grow extremely well on marginal lands using salt water or wastewater, reducing impacts on valuable agricultural lands without competing with other industries for 

diminishing freshwater supplies. 

Fuels and Other Products 

Algae contain high levels of oils, carbohydrates, sugars and proteins. These characteristics 

make them ideal for producing renewable fuel, animal feed and even human food. 

Microalgal biomass, which is rich in micronutrients, is already used for dietary supplements to advance human health. Algae has even been used to more economically produce 

anti-cancer drugs and in other medical applications. They can also be used to beneficially 

reuse greenhouse gas emissions and treat wastewater. 

The Opportunities 

Algae-based fuels can be produced domestically, improving America’s food and energy 

security. Algae can also grow in a wide variety of climates by a multitude of production 

methods, creating a wide variety of jobs throughout the United States. And their ability to 

grow on marginal lands, absorb CO2 and treat wastewater means they can have a positive 

impact on our environment. 
 

Mary Rosenthal 

Executive Director 

507-765-2134 

mrosenthal@algaebiomass.org 

www.algaebiomass.org 

Industrial-Scale Science 

Game-changing energy technologies don’t commercialize themselves. In addition to hard work,

scientific breakthroughs and engineering feats, new companies need support in the regulatory and

policy arenas. Since 2008, the Algae Biomass Organization – the trade association for the US

Algae Industry – has helped its 250+ membership accelerate the commercialization of sustainable

commodities produced from algae by serving as an advocate and a voice for the industry on Capitol Hill. 

The member companies highlighted in this Algae Industry Project Book are just a few of the hundreds of startups, universities, national labs and Fortune 500 companies developing algae’s unique

ability to drive economic growth, enable food and energy security and reduce harmful greenhouse

gas emissions. 

Whether it’s Green Crude from Sapphire Energy, high value cosmetics and nutritional products

from Heliae, ethanol from Algenol, beneficial CO reuse from Duke Energy, or any of the many 2

promising projects listed in this book, you will find the algae industry well positioned to make a 

significant, triple bottom-line impact on our nation. 

This success you see in these pages will continue to be a team effort. It is important to remember

that all innovative companies can benefit from partnerships and support when deploying new

technologies to scale. Partnerships with, and funding from, agencies like the Departments of Energy and Agriculture and support from state legislatures and Members of Congress have catapulted the industry forward. 

With billions of dollars in venture capital, ambitious entrepreneurs, and engagement from large

corporations like FedEx, Boeing, Kimberly-Clark, and United Airlines the algae industry is poised 

to offer a new and sustainable source of products and materials for the global supply chain. 

Take a look in the following pages and see for yourself. 

Sincerely, 

Mary Rosenthal

Executive Director 

Algae Biomass Organization 
 

 

 

 

Algenol Biofuels Inc. 

Algenol is an industrial biotechnology 

company that is commercializing its algae-based technology platform for the 

production of ethanol and other biofuels.

The Company’s patented Direct To Ethanol® technology enables the production 

of ethanol for around $1.20 per gallon using sunlight, carbon dioxide, marginal land 

and saltwater at production levels above 

10,000 gallons of ethanol per acre per year.

Waste algae from the process are utilized 

in conversion technologies to produce diesel, jet fuel and gasoline. Algenol operates 

a commercial development campus in Ft.

Myers, FL with 60,000ft2 of laboratory 

and office space, a 4-acre outdoor process 

development unit and a 36-acre pilot scale 

integrated biorefinery. 

Commercial Development Campus

Fort Myers, Florida 

Investment: $190 million 

Current capacity is 10,000 gallons per acre per year 

Ethanol 

Employees 164 Funds

 Raised $190 million Products ULS Diesel 

Jet Fuel 

Gasoline 

Algenol Biofuels Partners 

Strategic Partners: Reliance Industries Limited; BioFields S.A.P.I. de C.V. 

Federal/State Partners: United States Department of Energy; Lee County, Florida 

University Partners: Florida Gulf Coast University; Georgia Institute of Technology’s Strategic Energy Institute, with 

contributions from The University of Colorado 

National Lab Partners: National Renewable Energy Laboratory; Pacific Northwest National Laboratory TIMELINE
 2006 

Algenol is founded after 

securing its first round 

of private financing. Laboratories are 

established in Baltimore, MD and Berlin,

Germany. 

2010 

Commercial Development Campus in Fort 

Myers begins operations, consolidating 

American operations in 

Florida. 

2013 

Demonstration of 

commercial viability at 

Integrated Biorefinery.

Evaluating first commercial sites in Florida,

Texas and other States. 

2014 

Commercial scale 

production facility with 

nameplate capacity of 

20 million gallons per 

year broken ground. 

2020 

Projected 1 billion gallons of annual production utilizing Direct to 

Ethanol® technology. 
Future Commercial Facility

Investment: ≥ $180 million 

Projected Capacity by 2015: 20 million gallons per year 

Algenol’s first commercial facility will include an initial deployment of photobioreactors on 400 acres on a site that will 

facilitate a future scale-up to 1,500 to 2,000 acres of photobioreactors along with upstream and downstream processing equipment and related infrastructure. It will be located on marginal land with access to salt water and an industrial 

source of CO2

. 

Projected jobs by 2020: Production in 2020: Construction jobs: 

500 permanent 

jobs per facility 2,000 per facility 1 billion gallons 

of ethanol per

year 

Algenol uses fully closed and sealed photobioreactors for ethanol production directly from enhanced algae. Waste algae are converted into diesel, 

jet fuel and gasoline using hydrothermal liquefaction and other conversion 

technologies. 
 

 

Sapphire Energy 

San Diego based Sapphire Energy is pioneering an entirely new industry – Green 

Crude Oil Production. Green Crude is a 

renewable, drop-in replacement for petroleum, made from algae, sunlight and 

CO2. Green Crude is compatible with 

existing infrastructure; and is low carbon,

renewable, and scalable. Sapphire Energy 

was the first algae-to-energy company to 

successfully test their jet fuel in two commercial airline flights in 2009 (Continental 

and Japan Airlines). The company has an 

R&D facility in Las Cruces, NM, and is 

currently operating and producing crude 

oil daily from the world’s first Integrated 

Algal BioRefinery (Green Crude Farm) 

commercial demonstration facility in Columbus, NM. 

Green Crude Oil, Funds Employees 150 $350 million Products a direct substitute Raised 

for fossil crude 

Sapphire Energy’s Partners 

Investment Partners: ARCH Venture Partners; The Wellcome Trust; Cascade Investment, LLC; Venrock; Arrowpoint; 

and Monsanto 

Strategic Partners: Monsanto, The Linde Group; Tesoro Refining and Marketing Company, LLC; and the Institute of 

Systems Biology (ISB) 

Federal/State Partners: The US Department of Energy and the US Department of Agriculture 

University/Research Partners: The Department of Energy’s Joint Genome Institute; University of California, San Diego; the San Diego Center for Algal Biotechnology; The Scripps Research Institute; University of Tulsa; Sandia National 

Laboratory; and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory 

Research and Development Site

Las Cruces, New Mexico 

Investment: $30 million Jobs: 30 

Full scale pilot and demonstration of all unit operations from molecular biology to extraction of oil. 

TIMELINE
 2008 

One year after its 

founding, Sapphire Energy creates the world’s 

first renewable gasoline 

from algae. 

2009 

Sapphire Energy’s algae 

jet fuel powers the 

world’s first renewable 

test flights on two commercial airliners. 

2012 

On-time and on-budget completion of first 

phase construction for 

the Green Crude Farm. 

2013 

Sapphire Energy 

announces agreement 

with Tesoro Refining 

and Marketing LLC,

to purchase barrels of 

Green Crude oil for 

refining at its west coast 

operations. 

2018 

Anticipated launch of 

first commercial scale 

facility with production of 5,000 to 10,000 

barrels per day of Green 

Crude oil. 
 

Green Crude Farm 

Columbus, NM

Investment: $135 million Jobs: 30
 

Full capacity: 100 barrels of green crude per day.
 

Sapphire Energy’s Green Crude Farm features 100 acres of cultivation ponds and all the necessary mechanical and 

processing equipment needed to harvest and extract algae and recycle water. At full capacity the facility will be 300 

acres. The Green Crude Farm was funded by $85 million in private investment, as well as a USDA loan guarantee and 

a $50 million grant from the US DOE, totaling $135 million. 

5,000 - 10,000 

Barrels per day of Green Crude at 

a commercial scale facility: 

Continuous operation of all unit 

processes at the Green Crude 

Farm since: 

2012 

Jobs created during the construction of the Green Crude Farm: 

634 

Sapphire Energy is operating the most advanced, algae crude oil production facility in the world. The company’s Green Crude Farm is the 

world’s first commercial demonstration scale algae-to-energy site, integrating the entire value chain of algae-based crude oil production, from 

cultivation, to harvest, to extraction of ready-to-refine Green Crude. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

BioProcess Algae 

BioProcess Algae, LLC designs, builds and 

operates commercial scale bioreactors that 

enable efficient conversion of light and 

CO into high value microbial feedstock. 2

BioProcess Algae is focused on fulfilling 

feedstock needs in the animal feeds and 

transportation fuels industries for cost

competitive alternatives with favorable 

carbon balances. BioProcess Algae is based 

in Portsmouth, RI and is currently running 

a demonstration plant at the Green Plains

Renewable Energy, Inc. ethanol plant in 

Shenandoah, Iowa. Grower HarvesterTM 

bioreactors installed in Shenandoah are 

tied directly into the plant’s CO2

 exhaust 

gas and have been operating continuously 

since inoculation in October 2009. 

Company Headquarters

Portsmouth, Rhode Island 

BPA Portsmouth houses engineering, manufacturing,

business development and administration. 

Animal Feed 

Employees 40 Investment Nutritionals 

Fuels 

$50 million Products 

BioProcess Algae’s Partners to date 

Investment Partners: Clarcor (NYSE: CLC); BioProcessH2O LLC and Green Plains Renewable Energy, Inc.
 

(NASDQ: GPRE).
 

Federal/State Partners: The US Department of Energy
 

Lab Partners: Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences
 TIMELINE
 2008 2009 2012 

BioProcess Algae 

LLC is a joint venture 

between Green Plains,

Clarcor Inc. and BioProcessH2O. 

Demonstration plant 

co-located with a Green 

Plains’ ethanol plant in 

Shenandoah. 

Succesful completion of 

algae-based poultry feed 

trials, signs commercial 

agreement for Omega-3 

oils with KD-Pharma 

for nutrition and pharmaceutical applications. 

2013 

BPA completes its 

Phase III project, which 

consists of commercial 

scale Grower Harvesters. Selected by DOE 

for Integrated Biorefinery funding. 

2020 

Projected to have 25 

co-locations with 

375,000 tons of dry 

weight biomass per 

year and 750 full-time 

employees. 
 

Commercial Demonstration Facility

Shenandoah, Iowa 

Full capacity: One metric ton of biomass per day 

following Phase 4 expansion in 2014 

Jobs projected in 2020: Tons produced per day 

in 2020: 

Projected construction 

jobs:

375,000 

BPA technology enables algae to be produced as a crop, and growing crops is something Americans do phenomenally 

well. Not only does that give BPA an ideal opportunity to create agricultural jobs, but it also means that the company 

has no reason to outsource operations. BPA is producing a home-grown and home-processed product that can help 

achieve our country’s most long-term goals: feeding the world and sound financial standing. 

750 3700

BioProcess Algae designs, manufacturers and operates integrated 

systems using a unique patented attached growth approach to enhance 

light pentration, harvest density and gas transfer, overcoming these 

traditional bottlenecks to low-cost algae cultivation. 
 

Heliae 

Heliae® is a platform technology company that uses sunlight and low-cost carbon 

feedstocks to produce high-value products 

from algae. Based in Gilbert, Arizona, Heliae is leveraging its core production technology into four target markets: nutrition,

therapeutics, health & beauty and agrosciences. With a seasoned management team 

and world-class science, Heliae is advancing the future of the algae industry by delivering novel algae-based products to dynamic markets around the world. 

MARKETS 

•	 Nutrition 

•	 Therapeutics 

•	 Health & Beauty 

•	 Agrosciences 

Company Headquarters

Gilbert, Arizona 

Jobs: 104 

PARTNERS 

Mars Family; Salim Group; Arizona State University; Wageningen University; Clarecastle Group; others not disclosed 

TECHNOLOGIES 

Heliae algae strains 

Algae production systems 

Contamination Control 

Harvesting 

Product Extraction 

Since its founding, Heliae has harnessed an innovation culture to 

develop advanced algae strains, production technology, and downstream processing equipment to optimize algae production for a 

range of product targets. 

Heliae is currently building a 20-acre commercial production facility located adjacent to its headquarters and 

demonstration facility in Gilbert, AZ. The commercial facility is being built in phases, with a target completion of phase 1 in the third quarter of 2013. Heliae’s first commercial facility will focus on nutraceutical and 

cosmetics products with commercial off-takes already in place for the production capacity of the facility. TIMELINE
 2008 2010 2012 

Heliae is founded. Demonstration Heliae awarded more 

facility constructed. than 50 patents. 

2013 2020 

Construction and completion of Algae production facilfirst commercial facility; Heliae ities operating around 

has been awarded more than 70 the world offering 

patents and has more than 350 innovative algae-based 

patents pending; Company is products for a range of 

executing on a global pipeline of industries. 

project opportunities. 
Aurora Algae 

Aurora Algae is an innovative bioenergy company that manufactures fuel from 

optimized algae in a patented production 

process. Leading technologists at Aurora 

Algae have engineered a scalable method for fuel generation, using robust and 

highly productive proprietary algae strains.

The Aurora Algae process is carbon-mitigating and non-competitive with agricultural resources, and capable of industrial 

yields with minimal facility footprints.

When produced in conjunction with other 

high-value products, Aurora Algae’s biofuel can be sold at cost-competitive market 

prices. 

PRODUCTS 

•	 Biofuel 

•	 Omega-3 Essential Fatty Acids 

•	 Protein and Animal Feed 

R&D and Pilot Processing Facility

Hayward, California

Jobs: 70 

Corporate Headquarters with R&D laboratory for 

genetic research and product development. 

PARTNERS 

Oak Investment Partners, Noventi Ventures, Gabriel Venture 

Partners 

Aurora’s Pilot-Scale Demonstration 

Western Australia 

Jobs 50 

Six 1-acre production ponds and more than 40 smaller 

ponds producing 15 tons of biomass per month. 

Aurora Algae’s proprietary algae strains and production process uses arid land, seawater and captured carbon 

pollution from industrial emitters, resulting in more capitally efficient and more environmentally sustainable 

algae farming. TIMELINE
 2007 

Aurora Algae founded 

under original name 

“Aurora Biofuels.” 

2009 

Completes successful 

pilot operations in 

Florida. Biofuel production successfully passes 

ASTM standards. 

2010 

Introduces the industry’s first platform 

for the production of 

products in the pharmaceutical, nutritional 

supplement, aquaculture 

and fuels markets. 

2011 

Completes build out 

of new US-based 

headquarters and labs.

Completes construction 

of new plant in Western 

Australia. 

2012 

Successfully completes 

requirements for two 

million dollar (AUD) 

Low Emissions Energy 

Development grant to 

advance biomass production. 
 

Cellana 

Cellana, a leading developer of algae-based 

bioproducts, uses the most productive 

plants on earth—marine microalgae—to 

photosynthetically produce its ReNewTM 

line of Omega-3 EPA and DHA oils, food 

and feed, and biofuel feedstocks. 

PRODUCTS 

•	 Omega-3 Nutritional Oils 

•	 Food and Feed Supplements 

•	 Biocrude Oil 

Since 2009, Cellana has operated its Kona Demonstration Facility, a 6-acre, state-of-the-art production and research 


facility in Hawaii. To date, more than 20 metric tons of whole algae (dry weight) have been produced using Cellana’s 


ALDUOTM process with highly diverse strains, making ALDUOTM one of the most flexible, thoroughly tested, and 


validated outdoor algae production technologies in the world.
 

Cellana is in the process of evaluating commercial algae facility locations 

in Hawaii, the mainland U.S., the Middle East North Africa region, and in 

Southeast Asia. Cellana’s biorefinery business model involves establishing 

off-take agreements for biofuels, food/feed, and Omega-3 nutritional oils 

to be produced in algae facilities throughout the world with a total capacity 

of at least 100,000 metric tons of biomass per year. 

Kona Demonstration Facility 

Kailua-Kona, Hawaii 

Jobs: 25-50 Investment: $20 million 

PARTNERS 

U.S. Department of Energy and the Department of Agriculture 

TIMELINE
 2007 

Cellana LLC, a joint 

venture between Royal 

Dutch Shell and HR 

BioPetroleum is formed. 

2009 

Cellana’s Kona Demonstration Facility is commissioned and comes 

online. 

2013 

Cellana signs 

commercial-scale 

agreement with Neste 

Oil, the world’s largest 

producer of renewable 

diesel. 

2014 

Projected supply 

agreements for all three 

algae-derived products:

Omega-3 oils, food/

feed, and biofuels. 

2015/2016

Projected completion of 

Cellana’s first commercial production facility. 
 

PARTNERS 

KY Department of Energy Development and Independence; US-China Clean Energy Research CenterAdvanced Coal Technology Consortia; ENN Group; Pittsburgh State University. 

Duke Energy and the University of 

Kentucky 

Duke Energy is the largest electric power holding company in the United States 

with more than $110 billion in total assets. 

Its commercial power and international 

business segments own and operate diverse 

power generation assets in North America 

and Latin America, including a growing 

portfolio of renewable energy assets in the 

United States. 

The University of Kentucky’s Center for 

Applied Energy Research (UK CAER) is 

an interdisciplinary research center focused 

on the energy needs of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The Center, through 

its technology innovation and service to 

the community, contributes to improving 

the lives of Kentuckians by creating jobs 

and economic opportunities; by sustaining 

vital industries and public services; and by 

improving energy efficiency and protecting 

the environment. 

East Bend Demonstration 

Union, Kentucky 

Investment: $200,000 Capacity: 26,000 Liters 

PRODUCTS 

•	 CO2 Remediation Services 

•	 Algal Biomass 

•	 Fuel and Aquaculture Feeds 

A demonstration scale photobioreactor is currently being operated 

and expanded at Duke Energy’s East Bend Station located in Union, 

KY.The PBR converts the CO2

 in flue gas to algal biomass, via photosynthesis. The biomass is then periodically harvested to supply 

feedstock for upgrading into value added products. The low energy 

harvesting system recycles water and unused nutrients. 

TIMELINE
 2008 

The University of Kentucky begins its algae 

project. 

2010 

ENN performs strain 

evaluation using flue gas 

at Duke Energy’s East 

Bend Station. 

2012 

Algae based CO2 mitigation demonstration 

project started at Duke 

Energy’s East Bend 

Station. 

2013 

System volume expanded, first periods of 

sustained operation off 

of flue gas. 

2014 

Continue flue gas utilization studies/enhance 

collaboration with other 

strategic partners. 
 

Earthrise Nutritionals 

Earthrise Nutritionals is the largest producer of Spirulina algae in the world. It 

is a 30-year pioneer in the field of Spirulina research, biomass production and 

marketing. Earthrise distributes Spirulina 

and Spirulina-based products for the food,

functional food, dietary supplement, nutraceutical, and animal feed markets in more 

than 20 countries worldwide. Earthrise is 

currently engaged in research collaboration 

with major algae biofuel and bio-product 

companies worldwide. Earthrise is a wholly-owned subsidiary of DIC Corporation. 

PRODUCTS 

•	 Spirulina and Spirulina-based 

formulated greens products 

Earthrise Calipatria

Imperial Valley, California

Jobs: 60 

600 tons of Spirulina powder are produced each year in 

37 ponds roughly 1.3 acres each. 

Earthrise® operates the world’s largest Spirulina farm on a 108-acre site 

to supply more than 20 countries with the world’s best known Spirulina. 

In the clean, sunny California desert, Earthrise® Spirulina yields more 

nutrition per acre than any other food. 

In addition to its currently opearational ponds the company is testing two 2.5 and 4.5 acre ponds for biomass 

production, the latter being the largest fully lined outdoor raceway pond ever tested for algae biomass production. The facility has another 80 acres of empty land for future expansion. TIMELINE
 1972 

The progenitor of 

Earthrise, Proteus Corporation, is founded to 

develop Spirulina bluegreen algae as a world 

food resource. 

1982 

Earthrise develops a 

partnership with a Japanese company, Dainippon Ink and Chemicals,

Inc. (the present DIC 

corporation). 

2005 

Earthrise® Nutritionals is wholly owned 

by Dainippon Ink and 

Chemicals, Inc. (the 

present DIC corporation). 

2012 

Earthrise enters agreement with Sapphire 

Energy to license a 

spirulina strain for 

algae-to-energy production. 

2013 

Earthrise operates the 

world’s largest Spirulina 

farm, and together with 

sister companies’ farms,

DIC group is the largest 

Spirulina producer in 

the world. 
 

Phycal 

Phycal develops the biology, processes, and projects for the production of 

biofuels and bioproducts from high-yield 

feedstocks such as algae and cassava.

Phycal Algae, with the Department of 

Energy, is designing, building, and operating a pilot algae farm and biorefinery 

near the Schoffield Barracks in Hawaii. 

Phycal Cassava is using a proprietary strain 

of high-yield cassava to produce low-cost 

sugar for algae production and ethanol 

that qualifies as Advanced Biofuel for the 

Renewable Fuel Standard. 

PRODUCTS 

•	 Algal Oil 

•	 Bioproducts 

•	 Jet Fuel 

Pilot Algal Biorefinery

Wahiawa, Hawaii 

Jobs: 18-36 Investment: $65 million 

PARTNERS 

US Department of Energy

National Energy Technology Laboratory 

Phycal Subpilot Algae Facility

Highland Heights, Ohio 

Phycal’s Subpilot Algae Facility includes 16,000 square 

feet of indoor space with ponds, fermenters, and processing, and 5,000 square feet of outdoor pond space. 

Phycal’s Pilot Algal Biorefinery will validate three growth systems at scale: ponds, fermenters and 

HeteroboostTM – Phycal’s proprietary hybrid pond/fermenter system. This pilot is part of a $65 million 

research and development project partially funded with a $51 million R&D contract from the Department 

of Energy. TIMELINE
 2007 2008 2013 2015 2017 

Phycal founded, headquarters and main lab 

established in ClevePhycal awarded $3 

million from DOE for 

Phase I “Innovative 

Phycal awarded $48.5 

million from DOE for 

Phase II “Innovative 

Pilot to be scaled to 

demonstration. 

Projected commercial 

production. 

land, Ohio Concepts for Beneficial 

CO2 Use” 

Concepts for Beneficial 

CO2 Use”. Begins construction of pilot algae 

farm and biorefinery. 
Learn more about the algae industry at www.allaboutalgae.com 

About the Algae Biomass Organization

The Algae Biomass Organization (ABO) is a 501(c)(6) non-profit whose mission is to 

promote the development of viable commercial markets for renewable and sustainable 

commodities derived from algae. Its membership is comprised of people, companies and 

organizations across the value chain. More information about ABO, including its leadership, membership, costs, benefits and members and their affiliations, is available at the 

website: www.algaebiomass.org. 

Algae Biomass Organization

www.algaebiomass.org

507-765-2134