DSM Takes Stake in Amyris
DSM has agreed to make an initial investment of $25 million in US industrial bioscience company Amyris, giving it an equity stake of about 12%. The Dutch group may then invest a further $25 million, subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions.
The first tranche is expected to close on May 11. The second tranche, if approved by DSM’s managing board, is expected to close within 90 days of the closing of the first tranche. With the investment, DSM will gain one board seat upon the closure of each tranche.
As part of the deal, the companies have agreed to focus on a number of short- to medium-term product development and production opportunities in vitamins and other ingredients for the global health and nutrition markets. DSM will give Amyris a route to market and expertise in selecting the right products for segments such as animal and human nutrition and consumer health, while in turn benefiting from the US company’s sustainable technology.
“The Amyris technology platform and potential synergy can lead to significant cost improvements for DSM while accelerating Amyris’s market access. We expect this will lead to incremental revenue in 2017, growing annually based on the number of products we develop in our partnership and our pace of delivery,” said John Melo, president and CEO of Amyris.
Chris Goppelsroeder, president and CEO of DSM Nutritional Products, added that Amyris’s yeast-based strain engineering platform complements DSM’s capabilities and will accelerate its innovation toward cost-effective, fermentation-based processes for both existing and new products.
