Green light for construction of innovative micro algae production plant

Internationally renowned company BDI – BioEnergy International, so far known for development and construction of BioDiesel plants, now takes the first step into implementation of an in-house developed algae technology – together with 100% daughter company BDI- BioLife Science GmbH.

The Styrian plant manufacturer BDI – BioEnergy International AG invests roughly € 16 Mio. in the construction of an industrial plant for production of algae biomass. The ground-breaking ceremony for the highly automated plant will take place this year at the location Ökopark Hartberg/Steiermark.

After several years of research, BDI succeeded in bringing an innovative algae production system to industrial maturity. With engineering, construction and operation of an industrial algae production plant, BDI enters for the first time this international rapidly developing business sector as premium producer. As a first step, BDI – BioLife Science GmbH will produce algae based additives for the food supplement and cosmetic industry.

Following its philosophy of innovative refining of reusable material, BDI succeeded in developing an algae cultivation system, which guarantees a site-independent and constant production of high-quality algae biomass. Based on BDI’s wide experience in plant construction, a future-orientated in-door breeding system was developed, which sets technological standards in algae production. Due to the fully closed system, any negative external influences can be eliminated and therefore enable quickest possible growth of the algae.

In the cosmetic and food supplement industry the application of natural ingredients becomes more and more important – the trend is moving towards biological non-hazardous alternatives. BDI – BioLife Science concentrates on the production of natural Astaxanthin. This red colouring agent is recovered from special micro algae and is said to be the “diamond” of radical-scavengers and antioxidants.

The location for this production plant is Hartberg/Styria and was deliberately chosen by BDI. The close proximity to the in-house research centre and to local Universities provides synergies for the further development of the algae product range of BDI – BioLife Science.

„Constant production quantities, as well as highest purity and quality of the algae product are of utmost importance for our future clients – the content must match the label! With the rapidly increasing demand for algae products on the world market, this does not always seem to be the case. Therefore we want to position ourselves as reliable premium producer”, says Edgar Ahn, Member of the Board.

Bildschirmfoto 2017-10-19 um 18.12.11

About BDI – BioEnergy International AG

BDI – BioEnergy International AG is market and technology leader in the construction of customized BioDiesel plants using the Multi-Feedstock Technology the company has developed itself, which can manufacture BioDiesel from different raw materials, such as Vegetable Oils, Used Cooking Oils and Animal Fats. In the “From Waste to Value” field BDI supplies efficient plant concepts that are designed to produce BioGas from industrial and municipal waste. Together with its German subsidiary UIC GmbH, BDI is also active in the field of vacuum distillation. UIC GmbH supplies equipment and components for the gentle distillation of liquid mixtures in both rough and fine vacuum. In the Life Science segment, BDI creates with its fully-owned subsidiary BDI – BioLife Science GmbH new standards in the production of valuable algae-based products. This innovation enables the development of processes and equipment of the production and use of algae biomass.

BDI has specialized in the development of technologies that make optimum use of resources in the industrial processing of by- and waste products ever since it was established in 1996 and owns an extensive patent portfolio that has resulted from its in-house research and development activities. Our range of services includes public authority, basic and detailed engineering, installation and start-up as well as After-Sales support.

BDI – BioEnergy International AG and the companies it consolidates currently have 125 employees.