Virent gets EPA OK for its biogasoline
Excerpted from Wisconsin State Journal
By Judy Newman
Virent’s plant-based gasoline can hit the open road.
Virent’s BioForm fuel has received approval from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for use in highway driving, the Madison company said Tuesday.
The fuel, derived from plant sugars, can constitute up to 45 percent of a blend with conventional gasoline, the EPA said.
The ruling is “further confirmation of Virent’s high quality drop-in fuel and is another step towards commercializing our technology to produce renewable fuels and chemicals from biobased feedstocks,” Virent president and chief executive Lee Edwards said. He offered no timetable for commercializing the biofuel.
Virent also is working on plant-based substitutes for other petroleum products, from jet fuel to chemicals for plastics and fibers, including recyclable bottles for Coca-Cola.
The company has 80 full-time employees, all in Madison.
