DSM, Roquette to develop bio-based intermediate

Heerlen,The Netherlands - DSM has linked up with Roquette - a French starch and starch-derivatives company -  to develop and commercialise the fermentative production of biorenewable succinic acid. The companies plan to start up a demonstration plant for the technology in Lestrem, France, by the end of 2009.

Succinic acid is a chemical currently produced as a derivative from crude oil and natural gas. It is commonly used directly in a variety of industry applications, such as pharmaceuticals, food and automotive and also as an intermediate for the production of high-performance polymers. The bio-based succinic acid will be produced in a fermentative way with the use of renewable resources, said DSM.

"The novel production process developed by the partners will stimulate further market development of bio-based and biodegradable polymers that use succinic acid as an intermediate," the Dutch life sciences and materials sciences group stated. The process, it claims, will lead to an energy saving of 30-40% compared to a typical chemical process, and so cut CO2 emissions.

According to DSM, the demo plant  will have a capacity of several hundred metric tonnes per year. It expects that after a successful trial the technology will be transferred to large-scale production within two years.

Volkert Claassen, DSM Vice-President White Biotechnology, said: "This cooperation with ROQUETTE is the first tangible result of DSM’s Emerging Business Area White Biotechnology and clearly shows the innovation opportunities of cross-synergy between DSM’s strong technology platforms in life sciences (biotechnology) and materials sciences.”

Roquette is one of Europe’s largest starch and starch-derivatives businesses and world leader in polyols (sugar alcohols). The company derives over 650 products from six million tonnes of maize, wheat, peas and potatoes, and adds outstanding value to over 500,000 hectares of agricultural output. ROQUETTE has annual sales of more than EUR 2 billion and employs some 6,000 people worldwide.

The  DSM/Roquette cooperation is a spin-off from the BioHub programme, which is backed by the French Industrial Innovation Agency. The aim of the initiative is to develop new business opportunities by establishing cooperation between scientific institutes, universities and front-running companies in Europe in the field of industrial or ‘white’ biotechnology.