SAN FRANCISCO, CA — (Marketwire) — 03/06/13 — , which develops technology and processes for transforming natural gas into chemicals and fuels, is proud to announce that Edward Dineen has become the company–s CEO and a member of the Board of Directors.
Mr. Dineen brings over thirty years of experience in the petrochemical and energy industries to Siluria. He served as Chief Operating Officer and President, Chemicals at LyondellBasell Industries, one of the world–s largest fuel and chemical producers with over $45 billion in annual revenue and over 58 manufacturing locations in 18 countries. Prior to LyondellBasell, he was an executive at Lyondell and Arco Chemical where he was responsible for managing a number of chemical and fuel businesses, planning and operations, sales, supply and purchasing, acquisitions and environmental health and safety, among other duties. Since December 2010, he has served as CEO of LS9, which develops biotechnology-based renewable fuels and chemicals.
“Natural gas is the most abundant pure-source hydrocarbon in the world and Siluria is the first company to come up with an economical, practical way to turn it into liquid fuels and chemicals,” Dineen said. “Siluria can lower costs for current manufacturers by integrating our technology into existing sites. We can provide a more capital- and cost-effective alternative to new capacity investments while expanding feedstock flexibility. And it can be economically implemented at smaller scale. I look forward to working with the team at Siluria on bringing this game-changing technology to market.”
Mr. Dineen joins an experienced executive team that has guided the company since its inception. “We are deeply gratified to have a petrochemical executive of Ed–s stature share our vision for Siluria,” said Dr. Leighton Read, Siluria–s Chairman of the Board and a Venture Partner at Alloy Ventures. “Ed brings a perfect match of strategic insight and leadership skills as we begin commercialization,” said Dr. Read.
Siluria has developed a catalytic process that efficiently transforms the methane component of natural gas into ethylene or other longer-chain, high-value hydrocarbons like jet fuel, gasoline, or aromatic chemicals. Materials made with Siluria–s technology are indistinguishable from today–s petroleum-based products and are compatible with existing vehicles, chemical industry processes and manufacturing equipment.
The company has been producing — the world–s largest chemical market, exceeding $150 Billion in size — with its catalytic process at lab/bench scale since early 2010 and in two pilot facilities since early 2012. It has achieved commercial ready targets at these levels. Siluria is currently designing a demonstration facility capable of producing hundreds of tons of petrochemical products per year. Construction on the demonstration facility will begin in 2013 and it will become operational by late 2014. Siluria is already engaged in discussions with chemical and fuel producers about future joint ventures and commercial relationships.
Transforming methane into a versatile feedstock will fundamentally rewrite the economics in the hydrocarbon economy. Although widely abundant, natural gas today primarily gets consumed as a direct fuel to generate heat for power plants or buildings. By contrast, oil is transformed into a myriad of transportation fuels, plastics, and high-value specialty materials. Partly as a result of their vastly different applications, a significant and widening gap has emerged between the prices of oil and gas.
By replacing oil with natural gas, Siluria–s technology at scale will be capable of reducing fuel costs for consumers and production costs for manufacturers, while increasing opportunities for gas producers. Siluria–s process for producing ethylene consumes substantially less energy than conventional “cracking” systems, significantly reducing the overall emissions and helping manufacturers better meet regulatory requirements. Siluria–s process, in fact, generates energy, which gets captured to produce power for sale or internal consumption. The technology can be used to transform biogas as well, allowing both improved environmental impact and sustainability.
“We are extremely excited to welcome Ed to Siluria,” said Dr. Alex Tkachenko, co-founder and President of Siluria. “Our technology now stands ready for scale-up and commercialization. Ed will lead the effort to bring the technology to market and truly unlock the untapped value of natural gas.”
Siluria Technologies is commercializing its process technology for converting natural gas into higher-value chemicals and fuels. Siluria–s energy-efficient process and cost-advantaged feedstock provide a compelling alternative to crude oil based processes. With a world-class technical and commercial team, Siluria Technologies is based in San Francisco, California. The company has raised $66 million from a syndicate of private equity and venture investors including; ARCH Venture Partners, The Wellcome Trust, Alloy Ventures, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Bright Capital, Altitude Life Science Ventures, Lux Capital and Vulcan Capital.
For more information, please contact:
Michael Kanellos
Eastwick Communications
(415) 820-4176