Photo Release -- LS9 Announces Successful Start-up of Florida Demonstration Facility

First Production Run Achieves Technical Goals


SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Sept. 10, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- LS9, Inc., a technology leader in the development of renewable and sustainable chemicals and fuels, today announced the successful start-up of its Florida operations with an initial production run of fatty alcohols. LS9 completed the retrofit of the demonstration facility in Okeechobee, Fla. in May of this year.

A photo accompanying this release is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=14573

"We are very pleased that our very first run at 135,000 liter scale went so well. It is a direct reflection of the strength of our technology team in South San Francisco and our operations team in Okeechobee," said Ed Dineen, President and CEO of LS9.

Initially, the Florida facility will be used to enhance the Company's production capability and generate large commercial samples for testing and product qualification by key partners and prospective customers. This first production run performed superbly, producing several tons of fatty alcohol with excellent replication of technical metrics seen at pilot scale. Fatty alcohols, which are long carbon chain alcohols, are used widely in the $5 billion market for surfactants, including industrial and consumer detergents. The facility will also be used to test and optimize new process conditions.

"We plan to perform additional fatty alcohol runs to demonstrate the robustness of our technology platform and then switch to diesel fuel and ester chemical production to further demonstrate the production optionality of the technology," added Dineen.

"We'd like to thank all of our employees who have been involved with this project, especially Pablo Otero who was the Project Director. In addition, we would like to recognize the support of the Florida Opportunity Fund and all the local contractors who helped us retrofit the facility," said Greg Rood, LS9's Vice President of Operations.

About LS9, Inc.

LS9, Inc. is a technology leader in the commercial development of a growing portfolio of sustainable products to meet the needs of chemical and fuel markets worldwide. Its unique technology platform enables low costs, feedstock flexibility and process simplicity across a diversity of fermentation-derived products ranging from vehicle-ready fuels to chemicals for lubricants, detergents and personal care products. In June 2010, LS9 was awarded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's highest environmental honor for its revolutionary technology. The Company's investors include Flagship Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Chevron Technology Ventures and BlackRock. LS9 is headquartered in South San Francisco, California. Further information can be found at www.ls9.com.

The LS9, Inc. logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=10023


            
LS9's Florida Demonstration Facility

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