Photo: MetGen Oy
Emerald Technology Ventures is pleased to announce the first investment from its new Fund: MetGen Oy, a Finnish industrial biotech company that develops industrial enzyme solutions for the pulp & paper industry and non-food biomass transformation into renewable chemicals and fuels. Emerald joins the Series A financing round which included Sofinnova Partners, Finnish Industry Investment, HST Partners, Finnvera and Cleantech Invest.
Founded by the serial entrepreneurs Alex Michine and Prof. Alex Azhayev in 2006, MetGen developed a proprietary technology platform to modify naturally occurring enzymes. The approach resulted in outstanding catalytic properties for harsh industrial environments. The enzyme solutions allow for significant energy savings in the refining process of pulp & paper production and contribute to significant cost savings in the conversion of non-food biomass into cellulosic sugars for the biofuel and renewable chemicals industry.
Alex Michine, CEO and Founder of the company stated: “We are very proud to welcome such a high caliber investor to our company. Emerald’s deep domain expertise and global industrial network will be an important pillar in supporting our growth.”
“We are very pleased to be on board and support the company on its growth and international expansion plan,” commented Gina Domanig, Managing Partner at Emerald. “MetGen represents an exciting opportunity to serve the fast growing industrial biotech market.“
Philipp Hasler, Investment Director at Emerald, added: “We identified MetGen as a unique opportunity addressing one of the biggest markets in industrial biotech and with product solutions that are complementary to the offerings of the globally leading enzyme companies.” Following the transaction, Mr. Hasler joined the Supervisory Board of MetGen.
About MetGen
MetGen develops disruptive enzymatic solutions that enable significant efficiency improvements in the pulp and paper and biofuel industries. The company offers enzymatic solutions for the pre-treatment of a variety of ligno-celullosic sources. MetGen’s solution dramatically saves energy at the refining step in the pulp and paper industry. In the advanced biofuel sector the company makes low cost ligno-cellulosic sugar production possible.. MetGen’s competitive advantage lies in its ability to tailor or adapt enzymes to meet each customer’s segment specific needs.
About Emerald Technology Ventures
Emerald Technology Ventures is a globally recognized investor in the areas of energy, water and materials. Founded in 2000, Emerald has been a venture capital pioneer in these industrial sectors and invested in fifty companies to date. From offices in Zurich, Switzerland and Toronto, Canada, Emerald has managed three venture capital funds and two venture capital portfolio mandates totaling over €340 million (USD 450 million). Fund investors include leading financial institutions and multinational corporations.
For more information please contact:
Alex Michine, CEO, MetGen, Tel: +358405433740, e-mail: alex@metgen.com
Philipp Hasler, Investment Director, Emerald Technology Ventures
Tel +41 44 269 61 28, email: philipp.hasler@emerald-ventures.com