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Photanol raised € 8 million from shareholders to build a demonstration plant in Delfzijl for the production of chemicals from CO2 and sunlight. The plant will be located on the site of Photanol partner AkzoNobel Specialty Chemicals and must be operational by 2020.
Editorial office / Delfzijl

Photanol uses modified cyanobacteria to produce chemicals from CO2 via photosynthesis. The demo-plant is an essential step towards scaling up the production of organic acids that can be used in biodegradable plastics, personal care products and as intermediates for the chemical industry.

New shareholders

In addition to the existing shareholders, UvA Ventures Holding and Icos Capital, there are three new parties investing in the demo-plant: GROEIfonds, Innovatiefonds Noord-Nederland and Investeringsfonds Groningen. According to Sytze Hellinga, Investment Manager at GROEIfonds, this upscaling of Photanol stimulates the regional development and implementation of clean innovations in chemistry. ‘It shows that the Groningen ecosystem works for cleantech innovations.’

‘We want to prove to the world that we can make a big difference by producing clean chemicals and at the same time reducing the CO2 burden on the environment,’ says CEO Véronique de Bruijn.