TMO to present at CleanEquity Monaco 2010: 4–5 March 2010
5 February 2023
TMO Renewables Ltd, a leading developer of a new process for converting biomass into fuel ethanol, is pleased to announce that it will be presenting at CleanEquity Monaco 2010, the third annual environmental technology conference, organised by London boutique investment bank, Innovator Capital. Hamish Curran, Chief Executive of TMO, will speak at this prestigious event at the Sporting d’Hiver on 4–5 March 2010.
A major obstacle to developing a commercially viable, second generation, bioethanol process utilising cellulosic feedstocks is to find a micro-organism able to efficiently convert the sugars from a wide range of biomass to ethanol. TMO has developed such a strain of thermophilic bacteria capable of efficiently breaking down woody biomass to ethanol at high yields. It has now brought this process on to an industrial scale at its process demonstration unit in Surrey, UK, which has successfully completed more than one year of 24/7 operation.
Hamish will discuss TMO’s technology and how the bacteria’s broad appetite and ability to grow at high temperatures offer a range of process advantages including rapid feedstock conversion, low enzyme requirements, and low microbial contamination, which reduce capital and operating requirements. TMO’s success in implementing its second generation bioethanol process was recognised in 2009, when it won the Carbon Trust Award for Innovation in the Transport category.
Hamish Curran, Chief Executive of TMO, commented: “We are very excited to be presenting again at CleanEquity Monaco, especially as TMO has completed more than one year of successful 24/7 operation at our process demonstration unit as well as raising £11 million for the subsequent commercial roll-out of our technology. This invitation to speak is recognition of TMO as an important global leader within the cleantech community and we truly value the opportunity to attend.”
At CleanEquity Monaco 2010 an expert selection of inspirational global cleantech companies will present to senior members of the world’s investment community as well as policy makers, media and industry-specific regulators. This prestigious event provides a rare opportunity for industry leaders to get together to discuss key themes and sector issues. It is also, crucially, a forum for investment, gathering intelligence, business development and exposure to cutting-edge science.
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About TMO Renewables Limited
TMO Renewables Limited is a world leader in the development of ’second generation’ biofuels produced from biomass or biowaste rather than virgin crops. TMO has built the UK’s first cellulosic ethanol process demonstration unit (PDU) which integrates all the necessary steps in a continuous ethanol production process. This facility has been operational since the summer of 2008.
TMO’s unique high-temperature fermentation process boasts high efficiencies and fast conversion rates. It is capable of utilising all of the sugars, including complex longer-chain forms. At the core of the TMO process is a talented, heat-loving bacterium (a thermophile) that is able to grow at high temperatures (60°C–70°C). The bacterium, TM242, was developed from a wild type found on a compost heap and, as such, has an unusually broad appetite for biomass-derived sugars, rapidly converting them into cellulosic bioethanol. By contrast to conventional batch methods at existing ethanol plants, this allows a continuous production process which requires relatively mild pre-treatment and simple hydrolysis steps prior to rapid fermentation.