Evogene Ltd. (TASE:EVGN) and Ormat Industries Ltd. (TASE: ORMT) US biofuel subsidiary Orfuel Inc. are terminating their partnership. Ormat has refunded Orfuel a $100,000 investment in the venture.
Ormat said that it would continue its biofuel R&D activity on the basis of its accumulated know-how, including the use of castor bean varieties not developed by Evogene.
Evogene also said that it would pursue its biofuel activity; yesterday the company announced that Texas AgriLife Research of Texas A&M University will conduct field trials in southern Texas of castor bean varieties developed by Evogene. The agreement follows a similar agreement with Ireland's South Cone Agriculture plc (SCA) for trials in northeast Brazil of those varieties for use in Brazil's biofuel industry.
Evogene and Ormat launched their collaboration in September 2006. Ormat originally planned to invest $15 million in plant R&D and an additional $35-50 million in a biodiesel factory. In September 2008, Orfuel set up a castor oil plant biofuel joint venture with Lev Leviev Biofuel Namibia (Pty) Ltd. That partnership fell apart in early 2009, officially because the venture was unable to obtain licenses to import castor oil plant seeds to Namibia.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on February 1, 2010
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