04. Mar 2015
BioAmber begins commissioning of Sarnia commercial plant
BioAmber Inc., an industrial biotechnology company producing sustainable chemicals, has announced it has initiated commissioning activities for its 30,000 MT capacity bio-succinic acid plant located in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada.
Commissioning and start-up is expected to take approximately five months, with the facility being in commercial operation in Q3 2015. The Company expects construction to be completed in two months and it is carrying out commissioning and start-up activities in parallel. The cost of the project continues to track within the original budget estimate of US$125 million +/- 10%.
“This is a significant milestone for BioAmber, which is poised to begin a period of rapid growth,” said Jean-Francois Huc, Chief Executive Officer. “During the commissioning phase we will test the plant and get it running section by section, produce bio-succinic acid and qualify it with our customers and begin to sell product that meets specifications. We plan to be in full commercial operation in Q3 2015, by which time we can reliably supply customers including our take-or-pay contracts”.
The Sarnia plant will be the world’s largest succinic acid manufacturing facility, with an annual nameplate capacity of 30,000 metric tons. BioAmber has signed take-or-pay agreements with Vinmar and PTTMCC (a joint venture between PTT PLC and Mitsubishi Chemical) that represent sales volumes of over 5,000 metric tons in 2015 and 15,000 tons in each of 2016 and 2017. BioAmber has also signed a number of supply agreements with non-binding volume commitments that collectively exceed the available capacity in the plant.
A further update on the commissioning and start up plan will be provided during the Company’s upcoming earnings call scheduled March 12th, 2015 at 16:30 ET. (KL)
http://www.bio-amber.com