DuPont is executing a rapid commercialization strategy in its Applied BioSciences business for a diverse portfolio of high-performance, renewable products that address the needs of large markets. The company has set goals for the Applied BioSciences business of US$1 billion in revenue and US$250 million in pretax earnings by 2015.
The Applied BioSciences portfolio is developing solutions to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, and continues to be one of the most significant growth opportunities in the company's history. "We are seeing rapid growth and expansion from our first suite of biomaterials products while our biofuels programs have met technical and economic hurdles and advanced to the demonstration phase," said Craig Binetti, president – DuPont Applied BioSciences. "As a result, we are confident in our goal to deliver substantial revenue and earnings growth for DuPont."
Investors were invited to Tennessee to see the business' first commercial biomaterials facility and its first demonstration biofuels facility, each of which is bringing DuPont Applied BioSciences technology to market. The DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products facility in Loudon, Tenn., produces 100 mln lbs pa of Bio-PDO®. The DuPont Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol demonstration facility in Vonore, Tenn., is preparing this second-generation biofuel technology for market. Updates provided on the business portfolio included:
BioMaterials
Customer demand and adoption rates are growing rapidly for Bio-PDO® and its Sorona® polymer products across a wide range of markets. To meet this demand, DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products LLC announced a 35% capacity expansion for its Bio-PDO® product.
Sorona® polymer operations have doubled since the last investors update in 2007 and now include four polymer facilities: two in North Carolina and two in China to supply the rapid growth momentum of the market.
The Sorona® apparel business has grown more than 300% in the last two years while Mohawk's SmartStrand® with DuPont™ Sorona® renewably sourced polymer residential carpet line has doubled during the same period.
DuPont launched its Sorona® commercial carpet product offering last year.
BioFuels
Since 2007, DuPont BioFuels has formed two joint ventures, received two U.S. Department of Energy grants and two state of Tennessee grants and participated as a showcase of renewable fuels in the 2007 United States State of the Union activities. DuPont Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol LLC was formed in 2008 and Butamax™ Advanced Biofuels LLC was formed in 2009.
DuPont confirmed that joint ventures with BP for biobutanol and Danisco for cellulosic ethanol have accelerated technology development. Both ventures are in the process of demonstrating their technology at scale (biobutanol demonstration unit scheduled to start up in 3Q 2010).
In its biobutanol partnership with BP, called Butamax™ Advanced Biofuels LLC, DuPont confirmed that extensive market testing of biobutanol is complete. Fuels testing labs ran butanol for more than 1.3 million miles and retail testing was done with over 250,000 vehicle fill-ups and more than 80 million miles driven. Testing confirmed the valuable performance attributes of biobutanol.
DuPont maintains a minority share in Vivergo Fuels, an ethanol facility under construction in the United Kingdom with partners BP and British Sugar.
13-May-10 
