Global Bioenergies (Evry, France) announced that its first commercial production unit is now fully operational. All units (biological isobutene production, purification, condensation and packaging) have been validated and are now in operation.
Frédéric Ollivier, Global Bioenergies’ Chief Technical Officer, said: “An industrial project is invariably an adventure. This is especially so in these troubled times. Nevertheless, we were able to successfully build and commission the unit in very good conditions. We are now producing about 1 ton of isobutene per week. I would like to congratulate the entire Global Bioenergies team, who made this success possible.”
Global Bioenergies plans to sell purified isobutene for use in cosmetics and high value-added fuel applications that can cover what remains a very high production cost.
Global Bioenergies will also convert some of the isobutene produced, via an established chain of tollers, into cosmetic-grade isododecane for sale to major cosmetic companies under the trademark Isonaturane 12. The scale-up of this downstream chain was executed in parallel to the start of operations at the Pomacle unit.
Daphne Galvez, Global Bioenergies’ Head of Sales, said: “We will produce Isonaturane® 12 by campaigns. The first batch, which will be delivered in a few months, has already been sold in full, and our commercial discussions are now focusing on subsequent batches.”
Marc Delcourt, Global Bioenergies’ Chief Executive Officer, said: “The primary purpose of this unit is to generate revenue. Its second purpose is to pave the way in commercial, technical and regulatory terms for the 2025 launch of a new unit destined to produce 2,000 tonnes of isobutene and derivatives per year.”