Kuala Lumpur, 14 September 2012 – Malaysian Biotechnology Corporation (BiotechCorp), in collaboration with Agensi Inovasi Malaysia (AIM), organised the 4th Industrial Biotechnology Lecture Series (I-BLESS 4th Edition) held at the Best Western Premier Dua Sentral today.

Presented by the Manager of Beta Renewables, Michelle Marrone, alongside Vice President of PROESA(TM) Marketing and Development, Michele Rubino, the lecture titled ‘Commercialization of Cellulosic Sugar – Can Malaysia Reach The Goal?’ highlighted the challenges, opportunities and strategies of converting biomass into cellulosic sugar to produce bio-based chemicals. Looking into the abundant availability of biomass in Malaysia, Marrone introduced the PROESA technology which can be used to produce one of the most cost-competitive cellulosic sugar.

The processed cellulosic sugars, which have a smaller environmental footprint than fuels and chemicals made from oil or natural gas, can be used to produce biofuels and biochemical that meet emerging national requirements, Beta Renewables is the leader in converting non-food cellulosic biomass into costcompetitive biochemical and biofuel production. It is a 50:50 joint venture between Chemtex division of Gruppo Mossi & Ghisolfi with TPG. The company works exclusively on the development and licensing of its PROESA (TM) technology along with engineering solutions from Chemtex.

“BiotechCorp will continue to support initiatives to bridge the gap between upstream and downstream players. With the projected requirement of 1.0 million metric tons of sugar by 2015 to meet industrial demand, technology that are able to provide substitution to our sugar imports will become an important impetus for a greener ecosystem like the one in Kertih Biopolymer Park”, said Zainal Azman, the Acting Senior Vice President of Business Development and Investment, Industrial.

The proprietary PROESA(TM) technology focuses on production of cost competitive biobased chemical and will be the main platform technology for the company’s 60,000 metric ton per year biorefinery in Crescentino, Italy. The plant will be the first of its kind in the world and is targeted to start operations at the end of 2012.

“Strategic utilization of Malaysia’s biomass can position the country to become a frontrunner in the production of second generation biochemical. With the flexibility of PROESA technology, Malaysia will be able to leverage on its cost competitive production and gain access into a niche as well as higher value downstream market”, Ms Marrone said after the presentation.

The I-BLESS 2012 is a continuous program organized by BiotechCorp and has been identified as a platform for discourse between the industry’s stakeholders, key players, regulators, academicians, researchers as well as representatives from the financial institutions. Presentation topics will discuss trends, technologies and updates related to the industrial biotechnology sphere, with an aim to elevate the knowledge and efficiencies of various applications in industrial biotechnology to stimulate a greater economic growth.