Global Clean Energy Holdings' recent acquisition of Camelina Company España S.L. (CCE), based in Madrid, Spain, fits in well with the U.S. company's goals, its CEO said in a recent news release.
Global Clean Energy Holdings, a vertically integrated renewable fuels company headquartered in Torrance, California, announced Monday, Jan. 3, that it had acquired CCE, Europe's largest camelina crop innovator and seed producer. In his statement, included in the three-page announcement, Global Clean Energy President and CEO Richard Palmer referred to CCE's existing relationship with Seattle-based Sustainable Oils Camelina (SusOils) and what that relationship will mean post-acquisition.
"The addition of CCE to our family of companies and its synergy with SusOils further advances our goal of increasing the commercial value of camelina through improved agronomics and plant genetics," Palmer said. "Together, CCE and SusOils will build on our combined decades of camelina research and development activities that are focused on improving yield, reducing growing time, modifying plant oil chemistry to enhance biorefinery efficiency and improving livestock feed qualities of camelina meal."
The acquisition also "demonstrates our ongoing commitment to investing both domestically and internationally in the science, infrastructure and farmer education necessary to deliver high-quality camelina feedstocks to satisfy the growing worldwide demand for renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuels while not displacing food crops or impacting food security," Palmer said. "This acquisition provides an established launching pad for our rapid expansion into Europe and South America."
The company's goal to strengthen all operations across North America, Europe and South America.
Since its establishment in 2010, CCE has advanced quickly. By 2013 CCE became the first global company to receive sustainability certification from the highly respected Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials. The certification marks CCE meeting global sustainability standards and complies with the certification's system for biofuels and biomaterials production. The company, among other things, specializes in breeding capabilities, high quality planting seed, advanced agronomic research and superior genetics. CCE also practices camelina production and supplies sustainable and certified camelina oil for aviation biofuel production.
"We are excited by the significant synergies that exist between CCE, GCE and SusOils," CCE Director Yuri Herreras Yambanis said in the announcement. "Combining the knowledge and expertise of our organizations provides us the opportunity to further advance camelina research and production in ways that deliver profitable and sustainable advantages for both regenerative agriculture and the renewable fuels industry."