CUPERTINO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / September 17, 2015 / Aemetis, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMTX), an advanced renewable fuels and biochemicals company, announced distilled biodiesel produced by its subsidiary in India has been used by bulk customers to replace 100% petroleum diesel with 100% distilled biodiesel, reducing emissions by 80% and providing cost savings to customers.
Traditionally, in Europe and in the United States, biodiesel is blended in the range of 5% to 20% with petroleum diesel due to colder temperature conditions. With southern/western India's tropical climate, Aemetis led the introduction of 100% distilled biodiesel in truck, bus, taxi and stationary generator sectors as a 100% replacement of petroleum diesel.
The 99.8% pure distilled biodiesel produced by Aemetis has superior attributes such as a high cetane number (66-68) compared to the regular biodiesel cetane number of about 51 along with excellent lubricating properties to reduce engine wear.
The India diesel market is currently estimated at 25 billion gallons per year, which is significantly larger than the current India gasoline market of 5 billion gallons per year. The current biodiesel production capacity in India is only about 250 million gallons.
Aemetis now has multiple sales channels in India, directly selling to bulk businesses and selling through Government-owned oil marketing companies (OMC's). Aemetis is currently selling biodiesel to a large OMC in addition to a number of major transportation and logistics businesses.
"We are excited to lead the replacement of 100% petroleum diesel with 100% distilled biodiesel in India where 13 Indian cities rank among the 20 most polluted cities in the world," said Eric McAfee, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Aemetis.
"We have succeeded in working with major bulk fuel customers to convert their fleets to 100% distilled biodiesel to achieve significant cost benefits as well as help improve the environment," said Sanjeev Gupta, Managing Director of Aemetis' India biofuels subsidiary, Universal Biofuels, based in Hyderabad.
Aemetis owns and operates a biodiesel production facility with a capacity of approximately 50 million gallons per year (190 million liters) near Kakinada, located on the East Coast of India. After the recent deregulation of diesel prices and approval for direct market access, Aemetis' Universal Biofuels subsidiary expanded its sales team and increased production.
About Aemetis
Headquartered in Cupertino, California, Aemetis is an advanced renewable fuels and renewable chemicals company focused on the acquisition, development and commercialization of innovative technologies that replace traditional petroleum-based products by the conversion of first-generation ethanol and biodiesel plants into advanced biorefineries. Founded in 2006, Aemetis owns and operates a 60 million gallon per year ethanol production facility in the California Central Valley. Aemetis also owns and operates a 50 million gallon per year renewable chemical and advanced fuel production facility on the East Coast of India, producing high quality distilled biodiesel and refined glycerin for customers in India and Europe. Aemetis operates a research and development laboratory at the Maryland Biotech Center, and holds a portfolio of patents and related technology licenses for the production of renewable fuels and biochemicals. For additional information about Aemetis, please visit www.aemetis.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
This news release contains forward-looking statements, including statements regarding our assumptions, projections, expectations, targets, intentions or beliefs about future events or other statements that are not historical facts. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, without limitation, statements regarding our growth opportunities, our ability to grow and expand our business in India, the impact of increasing our sales efforts in India, the impact of sales at retail outlets owned by one of three major OMCs, the size of the market for biodiesel in India and the impact of replacing 100% petroleum diesel with 100% distilled biodiesel. Words or phrases such as "anticipates," "may," "will," "should," "believes," "estimates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "predicts," "projects," "targets," "will likely result," "will continue" or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on current assumptions and predictions and are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties. Actual results or events could differ materially from those set forth or implied by such forward-looking statements and related assumptions due to certain factors, including, without limitation, competition in the ethanol and other industries in which we operate, commodity market risks including those that may result from current weather conditions, financial market risks, counter-party risks, risks associated with changes to government policy or regulation, and other risks detailed in our reports filed or to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014 and in our subsequent filings with the SEC. We are not obligated, and do not intend, to update any of these forward-looking statements at any time unless an update is required by applicable securities laws.
Investor Relations:
Michael Bayes
(415) 389-4670
michaelbayes@liviakis.com
Company & Media:
Satya Chillara
(408) 213-0939
schillara@aemetis.com
SOURCE: Aemetis, Inc.
