Solugen's core product is its Bioforge technology platform, which transforms biomass into high-demand chemicals that have traditionally been derived from fossil fuels. The company is building a 500,000-square-foot Bioforge Marshall facility in Southwest Minnesota to produce bio-based chemical products for wastewater treatment, industrial wastewater, construction, agriculture, and the energy sector. The facility is designed to reduce annual carbon emissions by up to 18 million kilograms compared to incumbent production methods. Bioforge Marshall is scheduled to begin production in fall 2025 and is expected to create up to 100 construction jobs and 56 full-time manufacturing jobs. Solugen has engaged local educational and workforce partners to support recruitment and training for the project and aligned the effort with the White House's Justice 40 Initiative. Financially, Solugen has a conditional commitment for a $213.6 million loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of Energy to support construction of the facility, though funding is contingent on meeting technical, legal, environmental, and financial conditions. Solugen produces chemicals without fossil fuels, aiming to decarbonize the chemicals industry and deliver carbon-negative and low-carbon solutions. The company operates its first Bioforge (in operation for a year) and is selling commodity and specialty chemicals through top-tier customers and Fortune 100 technology partners. It reports a nearly nine-figure business selling those products. Solugen plans to grow and advance a new molecule pipeline to broaden its range of carbon-negative solutions for customers and end consumers. The company intends to use new funding to break ground on its next Bioforge and to begin work on Bioforges 3, 4 and 5 in the U.S. and abroad. Solugen has an explicit goal of enabling the removal of 10 million tons of CO2. Solugen is a Houston-based company that uses industrial biotechnology and green chemistry to produce lower-carbon and carbon-negative chemicals and materials via its patented Bioforge platform. The company applies synthetic biology, metal catalyst engineering and modular plant design to make chemicals from bio-based feedstocks. Solugen offers a comprehensive line of environmentally friendly products addressing clean water, sustainable materials, safer food, and personal care. It plans to use the new funding to expand its Bioforge technology platform and broaden the reach of its product portfolio. The company was founded in 2016 by Gaurab Chakrabarti, M.D., Ph.D., and Sean Hunt, Ph.D. Financially, Solugen raised over $350M in a Series C financing to support its technology and product expansion. Solugen is a Houston-based bio-manufacturing company that uses synthetic biology to replace hydrocarbon-derived processes in chemical production. Its core product focus is a bio-based process to produce glucaric acid, a specialty chemical for water treatment and as an anti-corrosive agent, made with a zero-carbon or potentially carbon-negative manufacturing method. The company says its glucaric acid is cheaper and more environmentally friendly than existing phosphonates and believes it can compete with chemicals manufacturers in China. Rather than immediately pursuing a large external round at a valuation north of $1 billion, Solugen raised an internal round of roughly $30 million from existing investors and prioritized bringing a commercial plant online. A commercial-scale facility was expected to come online in the summer, and Solugen intends to raise additional capital once production milestones are met. Co-founders Sean Hunt and Gaurab Chakrabarti plan to start with high-margin specialty chemicals like glucaric acid and later enter commodity markets as they scale. Solugen produces bio-based peroxide solutions using patented enzymatic technology to convert plant sugars into hydrogen peroxide (Bioperoxide) and sells products such as BioSol and ScavSol. Its products are used for water treatment in oil and gas, wastewater treatment, and mining, and are positioned as cheaper, safer, fully biodegradable alternatives to petrochemical-based chemistries. Founded in 2016, Solugen reports revenue growth of nearly 10× year‑over‑year driven by multiple, multi‑million dollar oil and gas contracts. The company has developed mobile micromanufacturing "mini-mill" platforms to co‑locate production with large offtake customers and reduce freight and distribution costs. Solugen is building a 200,000 square‑foot headquarters in Houston housing R&D, logistics and a commercial-scale mini‑mill, and has begun filing 10 U.S. patents. It has also commercialized a consumer brand (Ode to Clean, sold to Diamond Wipes) and won the EPA Safer Choice Award for Innovation.

Total raised

$849M

Funding rounds

7

Latest round

Debt Financing

Latest activity

Jun 2024