Rex Tillerson from Exxon Mobil committed to investing in algae fuel for 10 years , but he pulled back after spending $ 100 million .
However , in 2013 , Exxon Mobil Chairman and CEO Rex Tillerson said that after committing to spend up to $ 600 million over 10 years on development in a joint venture with J. Craig Venter ’ s Synthetic Genomics in 2009 , Exxon pulled back after four years ( and $ 100 million ) when it realized that algae fuel is `` probably further '' than 25 years away from commercial viability .
Algae fuel