PetroAlgae expects initial revenues this year

PetroAlgae expects initial revenues this year

Fri Aug 14, 2009 3:53pm EDT

By Timothy Gardner

NEW YORK (Reuters) - PetroAlgae Inc, a company that hopes to make oil from algae and other aquatic microorganisms, will see initial revenues later this year as a consortium of Chinese interests pays for the company's first license agreement, its director said.

"We expect that contract will soon start cash flow," PetroAlgae director and chairman John Scott said in an interview. The company expects to sign other license deals this year, he said.

PetroAlgae does not make fuel from algae, but sells licenses -- blueprints for how to make oil from algae, one of the oldest life forms on the planet. PetroAlgae says its process of maximizing the flow of light to organisms pushes algae to grow between two to three times faster than it would in its natural state.

The licenses also show buyers how to make protein from algae into animal feed or a human nutrition supplement. The company says selling the protein will offset infrastructure costs and help the fuel be competitive with the price of crude oil at current prices and even lower.

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