AkzoNobel recently announced it has expanded its partnership with Solazyme Inc., a renewable oil and bioproducts company. The expansion reportedly provides for funded development, as well as agreed key terms for a multi-year agreement targeting annual supply of up to 10,000 MT of renewable tailored algal oils, pending successful product development.
The companies reportedly expect that the algal oil under the joint development agreement would be able to replace both petroleum and palm oil-derived chemicals. The target product is designed to have improved functional and environmental performance, as well as a lower overall cost to AkzoNobel.