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Commencement of Construction of Clinton, Iowa Facility
December 11, 2006
Cambridge, Massachusetts. Metabolix Inc. (NASDAQ:
MBLX), a company developing and commercializing environmentally sustainable and
totally biodegradable Bioplastic, today announced that permits have been
received for a commercial manufacturing facility designed to produce 110 million
pounds of biodegradable Bioplastic annually and will now commence
construction. The facility is being constructed as part of a joint venture agreement
with Archer Daniels Midland Company (NYSE: ADM), a world leader in agricultural
processing and fermentation.
"Initiating construction of this first commercial manufacturing facility for Bioplastic
in Clinton, Iowa marks a major milestone for Metabolix and our strategic alliance with
ADM," said Jim Barber, President and CEO of Metabolix. "We believe that Bioplastic is a breakthrough technology that has the potential to provide
environmentally-conscious companies and consumers with a renewable and
sustainable alternative to petrochemical-based plastics, and to positively impact
climate change, pollution and energy security."
Metabolix Bioplastics can be used as an alternative to petrochemical plastics in
a wide variety of applications, including coated paper, film or bags, and
thermoformed and molded goods. They are produced using a patented, biological
fermentation process that converts agricultural raw materials such as corn sugar into
a versatile range of plastics with excellent durability in use but that also biodegrade
benignly in a wide range of environments, including marine and wetlands.
The Bioplastic commercial manufacturing facility will be located adjacent to
ADM's corn wet mill in Clinton, Iowa. The plant will utilize starch from the mill's
existing corn grind capacity as raw material for Bioplastic production, and is
designed to initially produce 110 million pounds annually. ADM and Metabolix are
working together in a strategic alliance to commercialize Metabolix's patented and
proprietary Bioplastic technology. Permits enabling the start of construction
were issued on November 30, 2006 by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.
Commercial production of Bioplastic is expected to begin in 2008. Metabolix
and ADM are currently operating a pilot manufacturing facility to produce precommercial
quantities of material and developing applications with selected
customers.
About Metabolix
Founded in 1992, Metabolix, Inc. is developing and commercializing environmentally
sustainable and totally biodegradable Bioplastic as a clean alternative to
petroleum-based plastics. The Company is taking a systems approach, from gene to
end product, to integrate sophisticated biotechnology with current industrial practice
to produce plastics, fuels and chemicals from renewable resources. In addition to its
microbial fermentation platform for production of Bioplastic, Metabolix is also
developing a proprietary platform technology for co-producing, in non-food plant
crops such as switchgrass, Bioplastic and biomass for biofuels such as ethanol
and for chemical products. For more information, please visit www.metabolix.com.
(MBLX-G)
Safe Harbor for Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements which are made pursuant to
the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended,
and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The forwardlooking
statements in this release do not constitute guarantees of future performance.
Investors are cautioned that statements in this press release which are not strictly
historical statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding
commencement and completion of construction on the commercial manufacturing
facility, actual manufacturing capacity of the commercial manufacturing facility,
manufacturing plans and performance including the timing of commencement of
commercial production of Bioplastic, commercial viability of Bioplastic,
current or future financial performance and position, management's strategy, plans
and objectives for future operations, product development, present and future
research and development, regulatory approval and intellectual property, constitute
forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are subject to a
number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially
from those anticipated, including, without limitation, risks associated with: our
dependence on our collaborative partner for construction of the commercial
manufacturing facility, ADM's ability to complete construction of the commercial
manufacturing facility on time and on budget, the ability of Metabolix and ADM to
successfully manufacture Bioplastic at commercial scale and in a timely and
economic manner, the success of collaborative arrangement with ADM, the market
acceptance of our products, our ability to compete with petrochemical-based plastics,
fuels and chemicals, our ability to generate future revenues, our expectation of
incurring continued losses, the success of our research and development programs,
our ability to develop and successfully commercialize Bioplastic, our ability to
obtain required regulatory approvals, our ability to obtain, maintain and protect
intellectual property rights for our products, our limited sales and manufacturing
capabilities, our ability to hire and retain skilled personnel, and other risks detailed in
Metabolix' filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the
Registration Statement on Form S-1 which was declared effective on November 9,
2006. Metabolix assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking information
contained in this press release or with respect to the announcements described
herein.
Investor Relations Contact:
Integrated Corporate Relations
Kathleen Heaney (203) 803-3585
ir@metabolix.com
Media Contact:
Integrated Corporate Relations
Jackie Kolek (203) 682-8200
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