M&G Chemicals (Luxembourg; www.mg-chemicals.com) has announced that its wholly owned subsidiary M&G International S.à.r.l has entered into a joint venture (JV) with Anhui Guozhen Co.
The JV company, called Anhui M&G Guozhen Green Refinery Co., will employ PROESA process technology licensed by Beta Renewables to convert 970,000-1,300,000 metric tons per year (m.t./yr) of agricultural residues into cellulosic ethanol, glycols and by-products such as lignin in Fuyang City (Anhui Province, China). The biomass will be supplied by Guozhen under a longterm fixed-price agreement, and the enzymes needed for the conversion of the biomass will be supplied by Novozymes as earlier announced.
M&G’s and Guozhen’s stakes in the Green Refinery JV are 70% and 30%, respectively, and the total KV investment is estimated to be around $325 million, to construct what is said to be the largest cellulosic biorefinery in the world.
The two companies further expect to soon announce the creation of a second JV, to convert the lignin into steam and electricity.