UPM has reached an agreement with Avantium N.V. to acquire the intellectual property related to Avantium's Ray Technology, a process that produces bio-based mono-ethylene glycol and mono-propylene glycol from plant-based sugars. The transaction includes Avantium's patent portfolio and invention disclosures for the technology, according to UPM.
The acquisition expands UPM's intellectual property position across lignocellulosic biomass conversion pathways to bio-based glycols and adds future process configuration options. UPM is currently starting up its Leuna biorefinery in Germany, which the company describes as the first industrial-scale facility for lignocellulosic biomass-based chemicals production.
"This acquisition is a focused step that strategically expands the scope of our IP portfolio in bio-based glycols and strengthens our freedom to operate as we scale the industrial production of renewable chemicals," said Harald Dialer, Chief Technology Officer at UPM and Executive Vice President of UPM Next Generation Renewables.
The transaction is not material in financial terms for UPM.
UPM Next Generation Renewables creates sustainable, wood-based alternatives to fossil raw materials, ranging from renewable glycols and lignin-based functional fillers to renewable diesel and naphtha.
