CAMPINAS, Brazil--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Amyris Brasil Ltda., a subsidiary of Amyris, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMRS), announced today that it will supply renewable diesel during a 12-month fleet test involving 20 city buses in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The renewable fuel derived from sugarcane, known locally as Diesel de Cana™, will be blended at a 30 percent rate with petroleum-derived diesel and used in Mercedes-Benz buses operated by Viação Saens Peña, a Rio-based bus operator. The Rio transportation federation, FETRANSPOR, will use the data collected during this fleet test to evaluate the engine and environmental benefits of Amyris’s renewable diesel. The results of the fleet test will be presented at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) taking place in Rio in June 2012.
“We are thrilled to expand the use of our renewable diesel to Brazil’s second-largest city. This will be the first large-scale use of our Diesel de Cana at a blend of 30 percent in Brazil,” said John Melo, CEO of Amyris. “We continue to see strong demand for our renewable fuels, particularly as more engine suppliers and transport operators validate their performance.”
The city of Rio de Janeiro has more than 8,000 buses consuming about 280 million liters of diesel per year. The Rio fleet test is expected to validate the significant reduction of nitrogen oxide and particulate matter emissions evidenced in recent Mercedes-Benz engine tests with a 30 percent blend of Amyris’s renewable diesel.
“Rio’s government and public transportation authorities are committed to leading by example in addressing climate change, and Amyris—along with our partners Mercedes-Benz, Petrobras, Michelin and BNDES—is honored to play a role in addressing Rio’s transportation needs,” said Paulo Diniz, president of Amyris Brasil. “We are ready to meet the growing demand for cane-derived renewable fuels in Rio as the city prepares to host the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games.”
Amyris has developed a performance-driven, pure-hydrocarbon renewable diesel fuel derived from plant-based sugars that does not require engine or infrastructure modifications. Amyris’s renewable diesel’s proven superior cold weather performance, high cetane and comparable energy density to petroleum diesel have enabled the company to obtain the highest blending registration by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. OEM partners continue to validate that Amyris’s fuels enhance the performance of existing fuels and enable significant reductions in greenhouse gas and tailpipe emissions.
About Amyris, Inc.
Amyris is an integrated renewable products company focused on providing sustainable alternatives to a broad range of petroleum-sourced products. Amyris uses its industrial synthetic biology platform to convert plant sugars into a variety of hydrocarbon molecules - flexible building blocks that can be used in a wide range of products. Amyris is commercializing these products both as No Compromise® renewable ingredients in cosmetics, flavors and fragrances, polymers, lubricants and consumer products, and also as No Compromise renewable diesel and jet fuel. Amyris Brasil Ltda., a subsidiary of Amyris, oversees the establishment and expansion of Amyris's production in Brazil. Amyris also has fuel distribution capabilities in the United States through its subsidiary, Amyris Fuels, LLC. More information about Amyris is available at www.amyris.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements, and any statements other than statements of historical facts could be deemed to be forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements regarding future events (such as statements regarding the commercial adoption and use of Amyris diesel and the performance and benefits of such diesel) that involve risks and uncertainties. These statements are based on management’s current expectations and actual results and future events may differ materially due to risks and uncertainties, including those associated with any delays or failures in development, production or commercialization of products, our reliance on third parties to achieve our goals, and other risks detailed in the “Risk Factors” sections of Amyris’s annual report on Form 10-K filed on March 14, 2011 and quarterly report on Form 10-Q filed on May 11, 2011. Amyris disclaims any obligation to update information contained in these forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.
Amyris, Diesel de Cana, and No Compromise are trademarks or registered trademarks of Amyris, Inc. and/or its subsidiaries.