Mercurius Biorefining: Biofuels Digest’s 2014 5-Minute Guide
Company name: Mercurius Biorefining, Inc.
3 Top Milestones for 2010-13: Develop and fund a pilot plant project.
3 Major Milestone Goals for 2014-16: Complete pilot plant project, develop commercial plant project, and start construction.
Business Model: owner-operator and/or technology licensor
Competitive Edge(s):
Superior economics. Mercurius has the technology and processes that will, for the first time, make the production of cellulosic biofuels profitable while meeting the needs of the diesel and jet fuel markets and satisfying government requirements. Management estimates there to be approximately a 2-3x cost advantage over competing technologies both as to capital and operating costs.
Faster and less “finicky” than competitors. The REACH technology is significantly faster than fermentation – taking 2-3 hours versus 2 or more days. While a few other methods (pyrolysis and gasification) are faster than REACH – they also must handle much higher volumes which require significantly higher capital investment/gallon. REACH is more robust than other processes with little sensitivity to impurities in feed stocks and with no use of delicate enzymes or bacteria.
Faster to market. The technology is similar to existing technologies and is very scalable.
Category: 5-Minute Guide