Elevance Renewable Sciences Announces Joint Venture With Wilmar International to Build World Scale Biochemical Refinery

BOLINGBROOK, Ill., June 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Elevance Renewable Sciences, Inc. (Elevance) announced today that it has entered into an agreement to form a joint venture with Wilmar International Limited (Wilmar), one of the largest global agribusiness groups, to construct a world scale biorefinery. The joint venture will use Elevance's proprietary biorefinery technology to produce high-value performance chemicals, advanced biofuels and oleochemicals.  Large existing and rapidly emerging new demand exists for these products in surfactants, antimicrobials, lubricants, renewable biodiesel and green jet fuels.

This commercial-scale manufacturing facility will begin with a capacity of 180kMT (approximately 400 million pounds) with the ability to expand up to 360kMT (approximately 800 million pounds) of products. The facility will be located within Wilmar's new integrated manufacturing complex now under construction in Surabaya, Indonesia.

The new plant is expected to come online in 2011, and like all facilities based on Elevance's biorefinery technology, it will be capable of operating using multiple renewable oil feedstocks, such as palm, mustard, soybean, jatropha or waste oils.

Once operational, the biorefinery will produce green olefins, including a unique distribution of alpha and internal olefins for chemicals and advanced fuels; novel multifunctional esters and acids, including 9-decenoic acid, as well as a premium mixture of oleochemicals and advanced biofuels.

"Elevance's unique technology fits our current business and asset footprint very well and provides an exciting growth opportunity.  It is a very capital-efficient way to enhance the value of the renewable resource feedstocks we produce," said Rahul Kale, Head of Biofuels and Oleochemicals at Wilmar.  "We look forward to working together to develop and deploy the technology at our facility."  

"As a leader in producing, refining, and marketing renewable feedstocks, Wilmar represents an ideal partner for the first commercial-scale biorefinery that Elevance will be investing in," said K'Lynne Johnson, CEO of Elevance.  "Wilmar's extensive capabilities and existing operations in Asia will allow us to quickly build and begin operating an integrated facility, accelerating the delivery of cost-effective, high-performing, renewable-based specialty chemicals to the market.  This joint venture represents the next step in growing Elevance internationally."

The joint venture is subject to certain conditions such as relevant government approvals.

About Elevance Renewable Sciences, Inc.

Based in Bolingbrook, Ill., Elevance Renewable Sciences, Inc. creates a wide range of specialty chemicals from natural oils. Using a Nobel Prize winning technology called olefin metathesis; the company creates high performance waxes, functional oils, anti-microbials, lubricants, additives and other chemicals. Elevance was named one of Business Week's Top 10 Most Successful Startups of 2008.  To learn more about the company, visit www.elevance.com.

About Wilmar International Limited

Wilmar International Limited, founded in 1991 is today Asia's leading agribusiness group. It ranks amongst the largest listed companies by market capitalisation on the Singapore Exchange.

Its business activities include oil palm cultivation, edible oils refining, oilseeds crushing, consumer pack edible oils processing and merchandising, specialty fats, oleochemicals and biodiesel manufacturing, and grains processing and merchandising.

Over the years, Wilmar has established a resilient integrated agribusiness model that captures the entire value chain of the agricultural commodity processing business, from origination and processing to the branding, merchandising and distribution of a wide range of agricultural products. Through scale, integration and the logistical advantages of its business model, it is able to extract margins at every step of the value chain, resulting in significant operational synergies and cost efficiencies.

For more information, visit http://www.wilmarinternational.com.

SOURCE Elevance Renewable Sciences, Inc.