Global Bioenergies

Press package September 2012

GLOBAL BIOENERGIES

Press Package

A breakthrough innovation to convert renewable resources

into hydrocarbons

Global Bioenergies is one of the few companies worldwide, and the only one in Europe,

developing a process to convert renewable resources into hydrocarbons through fermentation.

The Company’s most advanced program concerns the bio-production of isobutene, one of the most

important petrochemical building blocks that can be converted into fuels, plastics, organic glass and

elastomers. On the isobutene program, Global Bioenergies currently focuses on improving the yield

of its process and preparing forthe phase dedicated to pilot testing. At the same time, the Company is

working on replicating this success on other members of the gaseous olefins family (propylene,

ethylene, linear butenes, butadiene…), key molecules of the petrochemical industry.

Global Bioenergies is listed on NYSE Alternext Paris (FR0011052257 – ALGBE) and is part of the

NYSE Alternext Oseo Innovation Index.


1. Our mission : another way to hydrocarbons

a. A breakthrough technology…

Global Bioenergies develops an industrial process for the conversion of renewable

resources into hydrocarbons. This process can use feedstock such as sugars, cereals,

agricultural and forestry wastes or carbon monoxide e.g. from steel mill exhaust gas or

municipal waste gasification. This feedstock is then used to produce isobutene from which

are derived fuels, plastics and elastomers such as those used in the production of tires.

Compared to other biomaterials and biofuels such as ethanol, these products are identical to

those produced from fossil oil and therefore 100% drop-in.

b. … which fits in with existing industrial infrastructures:

A new route to such a molecule, which is today obtained exclusively from fossil oil, allows

industrial continuity. Indeed, isobutene-derived fuels can be blended with fossil fuels at any

proportion. Therefore, today’s storage and distribution infrastructures are compatible with

these fuels and no further investment nor adaptation effort will be required from final

users. Moreover, the biological production of hydrocarbons alleviates all the limitations

associated with ethanol, a molecule corrosive for engines and pipelines which is both

difficult to stock and characterized by low energetic density.

c. Isobutene to start with…

Isobutene is a gaseous olefin entering the

production stream of various plastics,

organic glass (Plexiglass®), synthetic

rubber, lubricants and fuel additives. A

total of fifteen million tons are produced

each year from oil.

d. … followed by a promising workflow

In addition to the development and industrialization of the isobutene process, Global

Bioenergies aims at replicating this first success by applying the same method to the

production of other light olefins, the key building blocks of petro-chemistry.


Global Bioenergies has IP and is working on another five light olefins:

An environmentally friendly process

Each kilogram of fossil oil used results in the emission of about 3.1kg of CO2 in the

atmosphere. On the other hand, the use of biologically produced hydrocarbons will allow a

significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Indeed, whereas fossil hydrocarbons

follow a linear industrial route from the ground (as oil) and into the atmosphere (as CO2) via

a succession of rigs, refineries and end users, the route taken by biologically produced

hydrocarbons is cyclic. Atmospheric CO2 is taken-up by plants; plants are converted by

fermentation into hydrocarbons which are consumed by end users releasing the CO2 which

can then re-enter the cycle.

Reductions in greenhouse gas emissions will be comprised between 0 and 70% depending

on the plants used. It is important to note that, thanks to a simpler process which does not

require distillation, the emission reduction will be greater than for bioethanol.

Fossilresources

Fuels and polymers

CO2

Fuels and polymers

CO2

Carbohydrates

Photosynthesis

Thermochemical or biological processes


2. Targeting the huge market of the petrochemical

industry

The processes developed by Global Bioenergies are a solution to the decline of oil reserves

and favor the development of a sustainable industry based on renewable resources.

a. The light olefins market

Light gaseous olefins are the main building blocks for the production of plastics, elastomers,

fuel additives and a multitude of commodity and specialty chemicals. Together, these

hydrocarbons make up a market totaling over 300 billion dollars.

b. The isobutene market

15 million tons of isobutene are currently produced each year, representing a market of more

than 25 billion dollars. The product tree of isobutene encompasses applications in the fields

of fuels and commodity chemicals.

c. Focus on various isobutene applications

Biofuels

Biofuels represent globally 44 million tons of oil equivalent1 (35 million tons from

bioethanol and 9 million tons from biodiesel) which represents a mere 1.1% of the 4,000

million tons of oil consumed each year. This means there is a huge potential for market

1 2008 numbers


growth, and indeed the bioethanol market has doubled between 2003 and 2009. The

technological breakthrough brought forward by Global Bioenergies and the drop-in nature of

these new biofuels (no blending restrictions with conventional fuels, no need to modify

existing storage, transport and distribution infrastructures) will facilitate the expansion of

these markets.

Synthetic rubber

Butyl-rubber is the main application of isobutene in the field of commodity chemicals. It is

the only gas-tight rubber and is used to manufacture balls and the inner chamber of all tires.

Approximately 900 thousand tons of high purity isobutene are consumed each year for the

production of butyl-rubber.

Organic glass

The original processes developed for the production of organic glass (Plexiglass®) used

acetone and cyanohydrin and therefore had large ecological footprints. Today, around 40% of

organic glass is produced from isobutene and requires around 400 thousand tons of

isobutene.


3. Understanding the revolution in bio-production

a. A brief history of bio-production

For millennia, the sole product obtained in large quantities from sugar was alcohol.

The 20th

century has witnessed the developmentof various bioprocesses allowing the

production of new compounds from sugars:

n-butanol, a commodity chemical used as a solvent, has been produced in large

quantities by bacteria belonging to the Clostridrium genus.

antibiotics, produced by fungi of the Penicillium genus,

amino acids used as animal feed (threonine, lysine…),

biodegradable plastics (PHA),

citric acid.

These bioprocesses took advantage of fermentation by natural microorganisms, which were

then improved by classical iterative strain selection techniques.

Recent advances in genetic engineering have widened the scope of applications: through the

introduction of numerous genetic modifications, it is now possible to increase the production

of a targeted compound up tolevels compatible with its industrialization. Several companies

have therefore developed processes based on improvements of natural routes present in

organisms which initially produced low levels of the products of interest.

This approach to improve the existing biological pathways, although successful in many

cases, cannot be applied to the production of light olefins since microorganisms do not

produce light olefins in nature.

b. Global Bioenergies’ technological breakthrough

From day one on, Global Bioenergies’ objective has been the setting up of metabolic

pathways allowing the conversion of sugars into light olefins, a group of molecules up to

then unreachable through bio-production.

The initial “discovery” phase of the isobutene program, initiated in early 2009, was

completed mid-2010. It resulted in the discovery of the enzymes that compose the isobutene

biosynthesis pathway, each of them catalyzing previously undescribed reactions.

By delivering the proof of this concept, Global Bioenergies has opened new perspectives for

industrial biology, an industry destined to replace a significant part of the traditional

chemistry over the coming decades. Indeed, isobutene produced by Global Bioenergies’

process is of greater purity than the isobutene purified from oil refinery streams which

is contaminated by molecules similar in nature and therefore difficult to isolate. The high


purity of biological isobutene allows us to improvethe quality of the derived products to

levels yet unseen in the field of polymers where isobutene purity is most critical.

This breakthrough technology is protected by a portfolio of several submitted patent

applications covering various aspects of the technology. The company is either co-owner or

exclusive licensee of these patents.

c. A competitive advantage

One key differentiation factor of Global Bioenergies resides in the gaseous nature of its

fermentation -- a more efficient method than traditional liquid fermentation.

Fermentation to a gaseous product presents two principal advantages:

- No product-associated toxicity is observed since the product does not accumulate in the

fermentation broth. This is critical as toxicity induced by the final product is one of the

main constraints limiting the development of bioprocesses. This difficulty is entirely

avoided thanks to the gaseous fermentation approach.

- Downstream purification efforts are dramatically reduced. This confers a major advantage

over the production of liquids such as bioethanol, which require an energy-intensive

additional step such as distillation or liquid from liquid extraction.

These advantages will result in reduced costs and an improved environmental balance, in

particular when compared to bio-ethanol, bio-isobutanol or bio-butanediol.


4. Industrialization

a. Past progress

Founded in 2008, Global Bioenergies’ first challenge was to provide proof of concept for the

isobutene production process. With this task successfully accomplished, the company

released a first prototype in 2010.

Over the 2010 to 2011 period, Global Bioenergies has struck four industrial agreements and

successfully carried out its initial public offering on the NYSE Alternext.

In July 2012, the company initiated the first trials in a laboratory pilot, based on a larger scale

fermenter (42L) and in an environment more similar to industrial production. The next phase,

running from May 2013 till the end of 2014 will be dedicated to performing trials in the

industrial pilot. The commercial production of biological isobutene is scheduled to begin in

2017.

June 2012: - more than half of the development has been accomplished,

- beginning of industrialization: laboratory pilot, to be followed by

industrial pilot.


b. Schedule

Development phases of the isobutene program

Several challenges remain to be overcome by Global Bioenergies:

Developing and industrializing the isobutene process.

Adapting the process to second generation feedstock: agricultural, forestry, domestic

and industrial wastes.

Replicating the success on isobutene to the development of similar processes targeting

other olefins.


5. Business model

a. Out-licensing the technology to industrialists

Global Bioenergies’ business model consists of granting exclusive licenses on defined

applications of a given light olefin (for example: bio-isobutene used to manufacture organic

glass), potentially limited to a particular market (for example: bio-isobutene used to

manufacture butyl-rubber for gas-tight chambers exclusive of the usage in balls). For fuel

applications, these licenses can possibly include a geographical aspect.

In general, licenses should be granted once the processes will have reached industrial scale

validation, which is foreseen for 2014. This will ensure negotiations are carried out under the

most beneficial circumstances.

Global Bioenergies intends to grant those licenses in exchange of the following payments::

an upfront payment at the construction of each production site proportionally

corresponding to 10m€ per 100kt production capacity, and

royalties on the value of the produced molecule (e.g. isobutene), comprised

between 2% (fuels) and 5% (commodity chemicals).

Discussions are ongoing with over one hundred industrialists from these four sectors.


b. Four agreements already signed

Even before 2014, Global Bioenergies’ is open to granting license options. The idea is to

select one player in a given field, for whom an exclusive negotiation period is reserved until

the process has reached a pre-agreed development stage. Furthermore, such an option comes

along with an information right and a right of first offer.

Overall, four such deals have been signed. The first three do not entail a definitive transfer of

exploitation rights, in accordance with Global Bioenergies’ model for the isobutene program

which does not foresee such licenses before 2013.

Partner Object

Big American industrialist (USA) Granting a license option.

German car manufacturer Collaboration agreement to strengthen

their sustainable development activities.

LanzaTech (New Zealand)

Feasibility study regarding the bio-

production of isobutene from carbon

monoxide.

The readiness of major industrial groups to contribute to the Company’s development in

exchange of well limited rights confirms their strong interest in the process even before its

industrialization.

The Company has also signed an agreement of a different nature with the Polish industrial

group Synthos. Given that Global Bioenergies wanted to reserve the funds raised during the

IPO in June 2011 principally for the development of the isobutene process, all R&D

programs targeting other light olefins had to principally rely on alternative financing. The

agreement signed with Synthos in July 2011 has allowed the financing of a new program

dedicated to the biological production of butadiene. This early-stage funding was agreed

upon in exchange for the definitive concession (subject to future payments) of rights on some

of the bio-butadiene applications. Rights for the other applications remain with Global

Bioenergies.


6. Financial profile

a. Financing

A first round of financing was completed

by Global Bioenergies in February 2009

and resulted in raising 3.2 million euros

from Masseran Gestion (now Seventure

Partners, subsidiary of Natixis), the capital

risk arm of Caisse d’Epargne (now BPCE).

In June 2011, the company carried out an

IPO on NYSE Alternext in Paris, resulting

in a capital increase of 6.6 million euros.

Overall and since its founding, Global

Bioenergies has collected a total of 14

million euros in successive rounds of

capital increases.

On December 31st 2011, the Company’s

shareholders’ equity amounted to 6.1

million euros.

During the 6 month period from July to

December 2011, Global Bioenergies had

operational charges of 1.8 million euros.

The Company’s current cash and

equivalents correspond to a visibility of

more than a year.

b. The shareholders

The Company had been founded by Marc

Delcourt and Philippe Marlière in equal

shares. Masseran Gestion, the historical

investor, today owns 39.9% of the

Company and, in principal, is not supposed

to undertake an exit in the near future since

the invested funds are still “young”.

The 20.4% free-float contains the

investment of two industrialists, Cristal

Union and Synthos. The “active” free-float

therefore corresponds to only 12.9%,

which explains the weak liquidity on the

stock market.

The two founders still have a strong

presence in the capital. Their shares

represent the essential part of their wealth

and it is therefore expected that they would

actively defend the valuation of the

Company.


7. Founders

Dr. Marc Delcourt, Chairman of the Board,

CEO and Cofounder: After his scientific

training (Ecole Normale Supérieure, PhD in

Molecular Biology in Canada), Marc Delcourt

turns towards R&D activities in the field of

bioprocesses and founded in 1997 the

industrial biotech company Biométhodes. He

left Biométhodes in 2008 to found Global

Bioenergies.

Dr. Philippe Marlière, scientific cofounder,

had set up one of the first synthetic biology

groups in the world in the 1990s. He has since

pursued his scientific work in biotechnology

companies that he has founded or cofounded.

Philippe leads Global Bioenergies’ Scientific

Advisory Board.

Contacts

GLOBAL BIOENERGIES

Marc DELCOURT – CEO

Liliane BRONSTEIN – CFO

Courriel : [email protected]

Tel: + 33 (0) 1 64 98 20 50

Global Bioenergies

Education

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