Viridas runs out of funds; jatropha pioneer heads for the brink

In England, Viridas is in danger of going into administration. In a statement released by the company, negotiations for £1.4m that started in November of 2009 have ended.  The funds being negotiated were destined to be used as part of a plan to establish  and planting out a base farm in Brazil.  Quoting the company statement, “Unfortunately, lack of clarity from the Government regarding future support for biomass in the renewable energy industry and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in the UK has created a high degree of uncertainty and had a significant negative impact on the decision making process of potential investors.”

While the Directors stated their belief “… that environmental, geo-political and economic considerations will provide opportunities for a successful jatropha business, but in the difficult current economic and political climate they no longer believe it will be possible to raise the funds necessary to progress the Viridas project within an acceptable timeframe.”

At this point, the Directors have stated that they are reviewing their options, and that includes going into some form of insolvency process.

More on the story.