Verdezyne, Inc., a synthetic biology company producing biobased chemicals, and Connell Bros. Co. LLC (CBC), the largest marketer and distributor of specialty chemicals in the Asia-Pacific region, announced an agreement for sales and distribution of Verdezyne's BIOLON(TM) DDDA (biobased dodecanedioic acid or "DC12").
BIOLON(TM) DDDA will be produced at Verdezyne's commercial-scale plant in Malaysia and will be distributed in 17 countries throughout Asia-Pacific, including China, Japan and South Korea. The agreement assures CBC of access to more than 10% of the expected plant capacity.
Verdezyne's BIOLON(TM) DDDA is produced more sustainably than traditional petroleum-derived intermediate chemicals and will be used to make a variety of end-user products including automotive parts, toothbrush bristles, cosmetics, and fragrances.
"This agreement with CBC reflects the strong interest in high quality renewable chemicals such as our BIOLON(TM) DDDA," said E. William Radany, Ph.D., president and CEO of Verdezyne. "As one of the largest and most respected distributors of specialty chemicals in the Asia-Pacific region, CBC is a strong partner for us. We are sure this agreement marks the beginning of a long and mutually-beneficial relationship."
Verdezyne's plant, expected to be completed in 2017, is anticipated to have the capacity to produce up to 9,000 metric tons of diacids including BIOLON(TM) DDDA annually.
"Verdezyne presented us with a very strong value proposition," commented Scott Graddy, vice president, CBC. "We anticipate a strong demand for BIOLON(TM) DDDA from our customers in Asia-Pacific. We are very pleased to have reached this agreement with Verdezyne and we look forward to distributing BIOLON(TM) DDDA throughout the region."