OriginOil, Inc. (OOIL), the developer of a breakthrough technology to transform algae, the most promising source of renewable oil, into a true competitor to petroleum, today announced its partnership with StrategicFit, a London-based strategy consulting firm with world-class analytical capabilities. The starting point for the project is the lifecycle model that OriginOil presented to the National Algae Association Quarterly Conference last September, which showed for the first time that a properly sited industrial algae production system could be both profitable and beneficial. “A recent study by researchers at the University of Virginia's Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering supported our finding that algae cultivated in a standalone agricultural environment cannot be viable,” said Riggs Eckelberry, OriginOil CEO. “This project will help our industry and its sponsors understand and prove what works.”
StrategicFit Co-Founder and Partner Duncan John said: “We have carefully explored the algae space and believe that there is real promise, but there can also be hype. Fact needs to be separated from fiction in order for the sector to build its credibility with investors, and we applaud OriginOil for taking the lead in driving for industry clarity and transparency.”
StrategicFit's people bring a wealth of knowledge to this partnership, drawing on past work with energy companies such as Royal Dutch Shell, BP, and Statoil; and technology companies such as Philips Electronics and Abbott Laboratories. This diverse experience, with a focus on the energy-sector, will help OriginOil identify key opportunities and challenges involved in commercializing its technology platform. The goal is to simplify strategic decision making through a rigorous quantitative analysis of the variables involved in algae production.
The partnership will focus on increasing the robustness of the core Algae Productivity Model by refining underlying assumptions and process logic. The team has already upgraded the model from a complex Excel worksheet to Analytica, a sophisticated platform with a modular format and an accessible user interface. Time sensitivity will now be added to the model, with a 20-year horizon that includes discounted cash flow variables, time for R&D and scale-up, and ROI estimates based on a waterfall analysis.
Moving forward, the model will address synergistic applications for algae production, including wastewater treatment, natural gas fired kilns, biodiesel refining, and ethanol distillation. The final model will be broken down into web-based analytical modules and will also be available by application to the OriginOil Partner Network.
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