LanzaTech named one of America’s most promising companies

LanzaTech has been ranked as Number 48 in the Top 100 list of America’s ‘most promising privately held companies’ by Forbes magazine. The assessment for the list was determined by variables including growth, quality of management, team and investors, margins, market size and key partnerships.

LanzaTech, a producer of low-carbon fuels and chemicals from gases, is the only clean energy or bioscience firm in the list’s top 50. Now headquartered in the United States, the company was founded in New Zealand and retains an extensive research and development base in that country.

Dr Jennifer Holmgren, Chief Executive of LanzaTech, says it is a huge honour to be selected by the editors at Forbes and to be listed alongside so many incredible companies.

“The recognition is validation of our approach to reducing emissions through innovative technology and solid partnerships with major players in industries around the world,” she said.

LanzaTech has developed game-changing technology that converts local, highly abundant, waste and low-cost resources into sustainable, valuable commodities. The patented process uses a microbe to convert gas containing CO or CO₂ (from industrial sources like steel mills and processing plants) or synthetic gas generated from any biomass resource (eg, municipal solid waste, organic industrial waste and agricultural waste) into fuels and chemicals.

The company reached key development milestones last year when it became the first company ever to scale gas fermentation technology to a pre-commercial level. Working closely with Baosteel, a major Chinese steel producer, LanzaTech, successfully operated a facility with an annualised production capacity of 378,541 litres of ethanol. The partners are now planning construction of a commercial facility.

The success with Baosteel also helped accelerate the development and commissioning of a second facility (also 378,541 L/year) with Capital Steel near Beijing.