Alameda startup Aurora Biofuels raises $20 million
East Bay Business Times - by Mavis Scanlon
June 13, 2008
Alameda renewable energy startup Aurora BioFuels Inc. is out to prove its technology to produce bio-oil from algae is viable on a large scale. The company has raised $20 million in a second round of venture financing to do so.
The second round was led by existing investor Oak Investment Partners, which was joined by existing investors Gabriel Venture Partners and Noventi. It follows the $3.2 million Aurora raised in early 2007. That initial round went to honing Aurora's technology in the lab and a small pilot program, said Matt Caspari, Aurora founder and CEO.
"This (new) money is to scale up," Caspari said, "taking what we've already done outdoors to a real-world environment."
Interest in algae as a biofuel feedstock for transportation fuels is growing. The plant, commonly called pond scum, is oily and grows very fast. It also does not compete with agricultural resources that can be used as food.
There are at least 15 startups trying to develop algae as a fuel source, including Aurora, Solazyme of South Francisco, Live Fuels of Menlo Park, and New American Energy Inc. (operating as Mighty Algae Biofuels) of Redwood City. Aurora's technology, developed at UC-Berkeley, uses open ponds to grow algae, which Caspari said he expects will "get us to the lowest price point."
Two-year-old Aurora is still operating in what Caspari called "semi-stealth" mode - he declined to say how many employees the firm has or how many it expects to hire - and also declined to discuss his exact definition of large-scale other than to say it is "significant."
Aurora's business model calls for ultimately selling bio-oil from algae into the existing refinery and distribution system, but Caspari declined to say what the company's time frame is for getting to market. He expects to sell to major integrated oil companies or other biofuel refiners, who would then convert the fuel to transportation fuel.
Although the idea for turning algae into fuel dates back several decades, "at the moment no one has proven that algae can work at scale," said Jim Long, venture partner at Gabriel Venture Partners and chairman of Aurora's three-person board of directors. Since the ultimate objective in producing algae oil is to lower dependence on foreign oil, "from our perspective it's better if many people are successful."
mscanlon@bizjournals.com | 925-598-1405
Monday, June 16, 2008
A conversation with John Melo, CEO of Amyris Biotechnologies
A conversation with John Melo, CEO of Amyris Biotechnologies
East Bay Business Times - by Mike Consol East Bay Business Times publisher
Friday, June 6, 2008
John Melo, CEO of Amyris Biotechnologies
First job: A gardener cutting lawns and trimming bushes.
Business philosophy: Start with a customer in mind.
How do you stay motivated: Search for the improbable. I'm a big believer that most of the establishment has created rules in their minds as to what can be done.
Guiding principle: There are many ways to achieve the aspirations people have, so never be committed to one answer.
Definition of success: Delivering the highly improbable.
Goal yet to be achieved: Helping save the more than 2,000 African children who die every day from malaria. We're developing a technology that aims to help reduce the cost of producing a cure for malaria and that will enable children to receive treatment in six weeks rather than 18 months.
Best decision: To join Amyris. It's the first time in my life I've found there's a purpose to the work I do. It's not just working to achieve the next level of achievement, it's a purpose beyond myself or the people in this company.
Worst decision: The consistent theme of the bad decisions I've made is giving up too early.
Biggest missed opportunity: Not being born in the time of Henry the Navigator. I would have loved to have been born in that era and traveled the seas and exploring without any prior defined model for how you should think about space.
Mentor: Lord John Browne, former CEO of British Petroleum.
Word that best describes you: Driven.
Like best about job: The people.
Like least about job: Raising money.
Interests: My family, reading and travel.
Pet peeve: People who know it all.
Most important lesson learned: There's always a better answer.
Person most interested in meeting: John F. Kennedy. He had a material impact on a number of immigrants who came to this country, specifically where I'm from, the Azores Islands.
Greatest fear: What I fear most is my own fear.
Idea of perfect happiness: Having a company that plays like a jazz band, where each individual plays their own music and, together, we deliver outstanding performance.
Greatest strength: The ability to connect the dots in very complex problems.
Characteristic most admired: I see a lot of value in people who can see beyond the obvious.
First choice for a new career: The leader of a micro-finance company focused on Africa.
Favorite quote: "No compromise" and "managing the paradox" are two favorites I like to use to frame a conversation.
How do you deal with stress: Either walking on the beach and hearing the waves, or sitting by a fireplace and listening to the crackling of the fire.
Exercise of choice: Mountain biking.
Most influential book: "The Tipping Point," by Malcolm Gladwell.
Most ecstatic moment: When I first immigrated to the U.S. and experienced flight for the first time. I grew up using ox carts and horses to get around. There were very few vehicles and definitely no planes. So a jet flight in a Boeing 707 was pretty amazing.
Favorite word: Possible.
Most cherished possession: My house in the Azores Islands.
Background
Name: John Melo
Company: Amyris Biotechnologies
Title: CEO
Years with company: 18 months
Career: President of U.S. Fuels Operations for British Petroleum, where he successfully led efforts that grew the business from $25 billion to $34 billion a year in revenue. Previously, a director with Ernst & Young in San Jose, and a management team member for several startups.
Education: Executive education at Stanford, Harvard and Insead in France
Residence: Chicago, San Jose and Emeryville
Family: Wife Mary, son Joshua, daughters Vitoria and Sofia
East Bay Business Times - by Mike Consol East Bay Business Times publisher
Friday, June 6, 2008
John Melo, CEO of Amyris Biotechnologies
First job: A gardener cutting lawns and trimming bushes.
Business philosophy: Start with a customer in mind.
How do you stay motivated: Search for the improbable. I'm a big believer that most of the establishment has created rules in their minds as to what can be done.
Guiding principle: There are many ways to achieve the aspirations people have, so never be committed to one answer.
Definition of success: Delivering the highly improbable.
Goal yet to be achieved: Helping save the more than 2,000 African children who die every day from malaria. We're developing a technology that aims to help reduce the cost of producing a cure for malaria and that will enable children to receive treatment in six weeks rather than 18 months.
Best decision: To join Amyris. It's the first time in my life I've found there's a purpose to the work I do. It's not just working to achieve the next level of achievement, it's a purpose beyond myself or the people in this company.
Worst decision: The consistent theme of the bad decisions I've made is giving up too early.
Biggest missed opportunity: Not being born in the time of Henry the Navigator. I would have loved to have been born in that era and traveled the seas and exploring without any prior defined model for how you should think about space.
Mentor: Lord John Browne, former CEO of British Petroleum.
Word that best describes you: Driven.
Like best about job: The people.
Like least about job: Raising money.
Interests: My family, reading and travel.
Pet peeve: People who know it all.
Most important lesson learned: There's always a better answer.
Person most interested in meeting: John F. Kennedy. He had a material impact on a number of immigrants who came to this country, specifically where I'm from, the Azores Islands.
Greatest fear: What I fear most is my own fear.
Idea of perfect happiness: Having a company that plays like a jazz band, where each individual plays their own music and, together, we deliver outstanding performance.
Greatest strength: The ability to connect the dots in very complex problems.
Characteristic most admired: I see a lot of value in people who can see beyond the obvious.
First choice for a new career: The leader of a micro-finance company focused on Africa.
Favorite quote: "No compromise" and "managing the paradox" are two favorites I like to use to frame a conversation.
How do you deal with stress: Either walking on the beach and hearing the waves, or sitting by a fireplace and listening to the crackling of the fire.
Exercise of choice: Mountain biking.
Most influential book: "The Tipping Point," by Malcolm Gladwell.
Most ecstatic moment: When I first immigrated to the U.S. and experienced flight for the first time. I grew up using ox carts and horses to get around. There were very few vehicles and definitely no planes. So a jet flight in a Boeing 707 was pretty amazing.
Favorite word: Possible.
Most cherished possession: My house in the Azores Islands.
Background
Name: John Melo
Company: Amyris Biotechnologies
Title: CEO
Years with company: 18 months
Career: President of U.S. Fuels Operations for British Petroleum, where he successfully led efforts that grew the business from $25 billion to $34 billion a year in revenue. Previously, a director with Ernst & Young in San Jose, and a management team member for several startups.
Education: Executive education at Stanford, Harvard and Insead in France
Residence: Chicago, San Jose and Emeryville
Family: Wife Mary, son Joshua, daughters Vitoria and Sofia
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
