November 8, 2011

United Agrees to Buy Solazyme’s Algae Biofuel for Air Travel

By Ehren Goossens

Nov. 7 (Bloomberg) -- United Continental Holdings Inc., which operates United and Continental airlines, agreed to buy from Solazyme Inc. 20 million gallons (76 million liters) of jet fuel a year made from algae.

Continental Airlines is using Solazyme’s fuel blended with standard, petroleum-derived jet fuel in a flight today from Houston to Chicago, the Chicago-based airline holding company said today in a statement that didn’t include the price.

The trip is the first U.S. passenger flight to use advanced biofuels, Chicago-based United Continental said.

Solazyme will begin delivering the biofuel as early as 2014, the statement said. The South San Francisco, California- based biofuel company produces an oil from algae, and Honeywell International Inc. processes it into fuel.

Solazyme fell 4.8 percent to $9.43 at 1:32 p.m. in New York, ahead of its third-quarter earnings report that is set to be released this afternoon.

Original article available here.

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