Company Name Seambiotic	Company Web Site http://www.seambiotic.com/	Headquarters Tel Aviv, Israel
Latest News June 19, 2008 Israel is getting a pond scum-to-fuel plant. This week Seattle-based startup Inventure Chemical clarified its partnership with Israeli algae-producer Seambiotic. The two companies say together they will build a pilot algae-to-biofuel plant that will use algae fed with carbon emissions. (We previously profiled Inventure here) The joint venture seems like a sensible match. Five-year-old Seambiotic has been growing algae in eight open algae ponds and has been working with both Inventure Chemical and the Israeli Electric Company, utilizing IEC's smokestack for a source of CO2 to feed its algae. (Our mention of Seambiotic in our 15 algae startups to watch.) Inventure, on the other hand, has been working on the process that turns the algae into different types of fuels, and the company's CEO Mark Tegen told us previously that the company wouldn't build its own plants, but would seek to find a partner. Inventure makes a reactor system that uses thermochemical processes and catalysts to turn the algae into three types of fuel: biodiesel, a fermentable sugar solution and a concentrated protein solution. Inventure is also working with Arizona utility the Arizona Public Service and biodiesel maker Imperium Renewables. Don't expect to see algae-based fuel on the market right away. Inventure's Tegan says he still thinks that the algae-to-fuel goal is "several years away."
Funding No specific funding information.
Technology Seambiotic cultivates a few selected species of marine autotrophic microalgae with high content of lipids and carbohydrates as equivilant to the production of bio-diesel and bio-ethanol.
Other Info Seambiotic is the first company in the world that is utilizing flue gas from coal burning power stations for algae cultivation. Seambiotic was founded in 2003 with an objective to grow and process marine microalgae using a revolutionizing ecologically based environmental system. Our technology and unique know-how can be profitably exploited in two major areas: Biofuel and Food Additives. For the last five years, Seambiotic has carried out R&D pilot study at the Israeli Electric Corporation's power plant located on the Mediterranean shore near the the city of Ashkelon, Israel. Seambiotic's efforts in cultivating microalgae utilizing flue gas emissions from power plants is a great step towards the reduction of air pollution and global warming. The pilot study has proven much success and reached an impressive production of certain algae containing high percentage of lipids and carbohydrates which promotes processing into bio-fuels. The world is expected to move from the cultivation of corn and sugar cane for energy purposes to the cultivation of marine algae. This will be accomplished by using existing resources without harming agriculture as a source of food. Seambiotic is developing a practical model whose success is likely to result in the establishment of marine algae farms in different locations worldwide on arid land with the availability of sea water and solar energy. The managment team: Amnon Bechar, B. Pharm, CEO; Prof. Ami Ben-Amotz - Chief Scientific Adviser; Noam Menczel - Director of Investor's Relations & Business Development. Seambiotic and the Israel Electric Company Power Station (IEC) in Ashkelon, have an agreement in place. The agreement includes the ability to utilize the land, including connecting to the smoke stack to obtain CO2, electricity, sea water, as well as engineering support when needed. Objectives and Strategies Seambiotic is pursuing the following goals and objectives: * Establish farms for marine microalgae to produce energy with the partnership of strategic fuel companies or electricity plants worldwide. The farms must be outside of Israel and in the range of 1,000 acres; * To market and exploit its technology, trade secrets and intellectual property in order to become a leading global cultivator of microalgae and the natural resources that come from it; * To rapidly become recognized in the industry as the marine microalgae cultivation leader, and the potential solution for the planet's rapidly depleting and cost increasing natural resources (fuel). This ability to cultivate microalgae and turn it into a variety of products will position Seambiotic for rapid growth due to the exclusivity of its cultivation capabilities; * To develop loyal long-term customers through the application of trade secrets, intellectual property and our exclusive cultivation methods while combining true commitment to customer service; * To engage in aggressive development of international markets and customers. Development plans might include expansion through the provision of leasing our technology to interested parties; * To market and exploit its technologies, trade secrets, and intellectual property in order to advance its goals, objectives and longer range development plans, one of them being a fully operation biodiesel company. Seambiotic intends to become internationally recognized for the purity and consistent high quality of cultivated Microalgae, for various applications, including and mainly for bio-fuels and Omega-3 uses among others; * To engage and invest in active research and discover associated with marine microalgae cultivation and the advanced research associated with such technology; * To create other such legal corporations and legal entities as it may need from time to time in order to advance its goals and maximize opportunity. ------------------- SEAMBIOTIC LTD. focuses on growing and processing marine microalgae using a revolutionizing ecologically based, environmental system. This process can produce biofuel by channeling smokestack carbon dioxide emissions through pools of algae that clean it. The growing algae thrives on the added nutrients, and become a useful biofuel. Another feature of this process is the production of polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) EPA and DHA from the microalgae. The PUFA such as EPA and DHA, together with other fatty acids constitute a group called omega-3, which is a nutritional supplement. As SEAMBIOTIC has already developed and produced algae, its main goal is to market algae as a nutritional supplement for humans as well as animals and bio-energy concentrating on a few marine unicellular algae containing high value products. Algal-derived applications have already proven to be of value for the production of fine chemicals, supply of food and bio-diesel. Certain microalgae are presently cultivated mixotrophically for commercial DHA extraction from the algal cells; however, there is no autotrophic cultivation of microalgae for EPA production. Seambiotic developed a technology to grow EPA/DHA-rich marine microalgae in autotrophic culture by using resources of the Israeli Electric Power Plant. The unique cultivation is low cost high algal production process that makes the production of the PUFA highly feasible. The pilot run by SEAMBIOTIC has proved much success and reached an impressive concentration of algae containing high percentage PUFA, oil and carbohydrates in a very short term, which promotes the production of bio-energy.