ADM invests in Rennovia

Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) has committed to a $25 million (€18.2 million) equity investment in Rennovia, a privately held company which develops catalysts and processes for the production of renewable feedstock-based chemical products.

Speaking about the investment, ADM VP of renewable chemicals Kevin Moore says: 'There is significant and growing demand for chemical products made from renewable feedstocks. We are impressed with the technology Rennovia is developing and look forward to the opportunity for its products to join our current portfolio of renewable chemicals – like propylene glycol and ethylene glycol – as they offer increased access to attractive end markets in nylons and other materials.'

Describing ADM as a 'leading producer of refined carbohydrates' with a 'focus on bio-based chemicals production', Rennovia president and CEO Robert Wedinger says the deal will 'scale-up and commercialise our bio-based chemical process technologies'.

Rennovia targets production of existing high-value chemical products using scalable chemical catalytic process technologies at costs lower than existing petrochemical processes. The company's first products are nylon intermediates adipic acid and hexamethylenediamine. ADM's investment will be used for R&D programmes and continuing operations.