Deinove receives €1.6m from Oseo for Deinol project

Deinove, a specialist in Deinococcus bacteria for biofuels, green chemistry and antibiotics, has received €1.6 million from the French state innovation agency Oseo.

The payment corresponds to the second tranche of Oseo's financial support for the Deniol project and takes the total amount received by the company to just under €3 million.

'We are delighted to announce that the technical progress made within the Deinol project has been officially validated by Oseo. Accordingly, the agency has paid us the second tranche of project funding. This will help us to finance the project through to the next milestone - the launch of lab-scale pilot tests with the candidate strain, scheduled for 2012', says CEO Jacques Biton.

With the aim to create new methods for cellulosic ethanol production by introducing deinocci in existing facilities, the €21.4 million Deinol project will receive a total of €8.9 million from Oseo. Project leader Deinove will receive €6 million.

Other partners in the project include ethanol production company Tereos, its subsidiaries BENP Lillebonne and starch and sweetener producer Syral, and two laboratories.

Deinove's approach is designed to enhance the biomass digestion capabilities of bacteria with Deinococcus.

Industrial pilot tests are scheduled to take place in early 2013 and last for 12 months. The beginning of 2014 will then see the Deinol process tested in a large-scale demonstration trial at the Lillebonne plant.