Advanced Biofuels Pioneer Terrabon Files for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy: One-off or Trend?
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Closely-watched green gasoline producer collapses as Waste Management declines next financing round. What does it mean for companies like Fulcrum Bioenergy, Enerkem, Agilyx, Agnion, Renmatix, Genomatica, and InEnTec? The Digest looks at the inside story.
In Texas, Terrabon filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection; the company’s operations will cease and a trustee will be tasked with liquidating the company’s assets for the benefit of creditors.
…In a statement, Terrabon’s leadership said that company could not obtain additional corporate funding to finish developing and engineering its first commercial-scale plant.
…Terrabon had a financing round planned for this year, which Waste Management was expected to lead. In August, Terrabon learned that Waste Management would not be participating in the round – part of what Terrabon was informed was a cutback in WM’s overall capital investment following a late July corporate shake-up.
…In the last week of July, Waste Managementannounced a decision to eliminate 700 positions … At the same time, WM maintained its shareholder dividend …
…We see this as a one-off. WM had a wide range of investments, and though the timing was awful, portfolio rationalization is inevitable for strategics. Terrabon had not have a completed engineering package at commercial-scale – despite being founded in 1995 – and clearly was “a bridge too far” for WM.
Last week, we wrote: “Here’s the problem with big strategic partners for small, early-stage companies – and one of the reasons that, for many years, VC firms didn’t want strategics along for the ride in venture development: strategics change strategy, and small changes at big companies result in big changes for small companies. What is a ripple in the water to a giant is a tsunami to a fly.” READ MORE
