MADISON – Virent has announced the appointment of Edgar Steenwinkel as the company’s Vice President
of Research and Development. Steenwinkel will lead technology development efforts of Virent’s
BioForming® platform
in preparation of commercialization of its biofuel
and biobased chemicals.
“Virent is the perfect match
for my experience and I am thrilled to join their leadership team,” said Steenwinkel. “The company’s novel technology and world-class collaborations will make for a bright
future, and I am excited to contribute to bringing their products
to market.”
“We are pleased to welcome Edgar to our team,” said Lee Edwards, Virent’s
CEO and President.
“His technical expertise and industry
experience in commercializing new technologies, combined with strong strategic planning and marketing capabilities, are remarkable and will prove to be very valuable to Virent.”
“I look forward
to working closely
with Edgar to achieve
our goals,” said Dr. Randy Cortright, Virent’s Founder and CTO. “His background and experience are ideal to take our current capabilities to commercial scale. With Edgar’s arrival, I will be focusing
on longer term technology strategy, external
technical resources, new collaborations and development of next generation platforms.”
Steenwinkel joins
Virent from Albemarle, where he served
as Global Business
Director for Alternative Fuels Technologies. At Albemarle, he led multiple global development and commercialization efforts for catalysts and other new, innovative products
for biobased transportation fuels. Steenwinkel has 20+ years
of demonstrated success in R&D, manufacturing and building new global business
groups. He received
a M.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Amsterdam.
Virent is replacing crude oil by creating the chemicals and fuels the world
demands using a wide range of naturally-occurring, renewable resources. Its patented
technology features
catalytic chemistry to convert plant-based materials into a full range of products
identical to those made from petroleum, including gasoline,
diesel, jet fuel, and chemicals for plastics and fibers.
The products are drop-in replacements that enable full utilization of existing
logistics infrastructure without blending limitations. The development of Virent’s BioForming® technology platform is supported through strategic partners
including Cargill,
Coca-Cola, Honda
and Shell, as well as 80 employees based in Madison,
Wisconsin. The company has received
several grants from the
U.S. Departments of Commerce, Energy
and Agriculture and has been recognized with many honors, including the World Economic
Forum Technology Pioneer
award and the EPA’s Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award. Please learn more at www.Virent.com.
Please learn more about us at Virent.com.
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