Siemens, Mitsui Invest in Environmental Specialist LanzaTech
03/27/2014 - The Venture Capital unit of Siemens Financial Services and central venture capital organization of Siemens (SFS VC) is investing in LanzaTech, a U.S.-based technology leader in the biological generation of fuels and basic chemicals from industrial waste gases.
The Siemens Metals Technologies Business Unit and LanzaTech have been cooperating since the end of 2012 on the development and marketing of integrated environmental solutions for the iron, steel and ferroalloy industries based on a fermentation process developed by LanzaTech.
In this round of financing, LanzaTech has received US$60 million from its existing investors and new investors including Mitsui & Co., Ltd., CICC Growth Capital Fund I, L.P. and Siemens’ Venture Capital unit. These funds will help LanzaTech to further commercialize its fermentation technology for industrial waste gases, to extend their core gas fermentation platform and further develop their product portfolio. To date, products include fuels such as ethanol or jet fuel and commodity chemicals such as butadiene used in nylon production or propylene used in plastics manufacture.
In December 2012, Siemens Metals Technologies and LanzaTech signed a ten-year cooperation agreement to develop and market integrated environmental solutions for the iron, steel and ferroalloy industries. The collaboration focuses on the innovative, highly-efficient fermentation process developed by LanzaTech, which can convert carbon-rich blast furnace gases generated in the metal-producing industry into bio-ethanol and other basic chemicals. The potential energy efficiency Siemens AG is around 70 percent higher than would be possible with gas-fired power plants. The CO2 footprint of the bio-fuel produced by fermentation is 50 to 70 percent smaller than that of petrochemically produced fuel. Siemens and LanzaTech are also cooperating on integrating and optimizing the fermentation process and on marketing and implementing customer projects. The first commercially operated plants are expected to start running in 2015.
"We are pleased to have the opportunity to further deepen the partnership between LanzaTech and Siemens Metals Technologies," said Karl Purkarthofer, chief strategist, Siemens Metals Technologies. "With this unique technology our customers will be able to reduce their ecological impact while also receiving an economic benefit. This investment proves our strong commitment in innovation and further strengthens our leading position as a technological front runner in green solutions for the metals industry."
In this round of financing, LanzaTech has received US$60 million from its existing investors and new investors including Mitsui & Co., Ltd., CICC Growth Capital Fund I, L.P. and Siemens’ Venture Capital unit. These funds will help LanzaTech to further commercialize its fermentation technology for industrial waste gases, to extend their core gas fermentation platform and further develop their product portfolio. To date, products include fuels such as ethanol or jet fuel and commodity chemicals such as butadiene used in nylon production or propylene used in plastics manufacture.
In December 2012, Siemens Metals Technologies and LanzaTech signed a ten-year cooperation agreement to develop and market integrated environmental solutions for the iron, steel and ferroalloy industries. The collaboration focuses on the innovative, highly-efficient fermentation process developed by LanzaTech, which can convert carbon-rich blast furnace gases generated in the metal-producing industry into bio-ethanol and other basic chemicals. The potential energy efficiency Siemens AG is around 70 percent higher than would be possible with gas-fired power plants. The CO2 footprint of the bio-fuel produced by fermentation is 50 to 70 percent smaller than that of petrochemically produced fuel. Siemens and LanzaTech are also cooperating on integrating and optimizing the fermentation process and on marketing and implementing customer projects. The first commercially operated plants are expected to start running in 2015.
"We are pleased to have the opportunity to further deepen the partnership between LanzaTech and Siemens Metals Technologies," said Karl Purkarthofer, chief strategist, Siemens Metals Technologies. "With this unique technology our customers will be able to reduce their ecological impact while also receiving an economic benefit. This investment proves our strong commitment in innovation and further strengthens our leading position as a technological front runner in green solutions for the metals industry."
