At Labiotech Refresh we had the opportunity to chat with Marc Delcourt, founder and CEO of Global Bioenergies, a biofuel pioneer challenging the oil market.
Global Bioenergies, from France, uses synthetic biology to produce isobutene, the “building block of the chemical industry“. This molecule, currently extracted from oil, is essential for the manufacturing of gasoline, rubber, fuel and plastic. The industry uses “20M tons per year, roughly €20B“, making it a very profitable market.
The aim of the company is to contribute to the energy transition that is starting to change the world. This shift to renewable sources addresses the shortage of oil and climate change concerns, and Global Bioenergies is now very close to the finish line: “We’re moving to a demo plant, which is the last step before commercialization“. The biotech plans to produce 100 tons of isobutene per year in this new plant.
“We’ve been able to attract more and more credibility, especially from the financial side“. In fact, Global Bioenergies has managed to ink a 5-year partnership with Audi, with which it signed a deal to produce renewable gasoline for specific cars from the renowned firm.
The company is also partnered with Preem, the largest fuel company in Sweden. This country is one of the main drivers of this energy transition: “Sweden chose to completely step out of fossil fuels and will stop using them in 30 years“.
Marc reflected about the many years of work behind his company, fighting as many other biotechs to make the world a better place: “We made a long journey from the lab, learning how to produce isobutene and rewriting the metabolic pathways to produce it in a fermentation process“.
To get the full details on Marc’s story about a company that is going to change the world we live in, watch our video from Labiotech Refresh.