French greentech company AFYREN announced on June 8, 2023 that it has made significant progress in production at the AFYREN  NEOXY plant. The manufacturer of bio-based, low-carbon ingredients produced using unique fermentation technology based  on a completely circular model has made delivery of the first lots of bio-based organic acids.

In the second half of 2020, AFYREN launched the construction of its first plant, AFYREN NEOXY, located  in Carling-Saint Avold in the Grand Est region in France. This is the world’s first plant for the industrial-scale  production of biobased carboxylic acids from sugar beet by-products.  

In the first quarter of 2022, construction of the plant was completed on schedule, with Covid-19 still unabated, paving the way for the industrial start-up phase. This preparatory phase for the launch of production  includes a number of technical tests and the gradual commissioning of the factory’s equipment and  machinery. 

Operations carried out over the last few weeks resulted in the production of several metric tons of product  and the delivery of the first lots. AFYREN has previously announced commercial commitments for 75% of AFYREN NEOXY’s annual production of acids and 100% of the fertilizer, representing total cumulative  sales of more than EUR165 million (USD176 million), to be realised over the coming financial years. 

AFYREN’S teams are working to make the plant’s operations more reliable, with a view to starting  continuous production in the autumn of 2023. AFYREN then plans to gradually ramp up volumes to  produce 16,000 tons of carboxylic acids per year at full capacity, for total annual sales (including fertilizer  sales) of around EUR35 million (USD37 million) AFYREN is targeting a current production EBITDA margin for this plant at  full capacity of 25%. AFYREN NEOXY’s break-even point (positive current production EBITDA margin) is  still expected by the end of 2023, given current estimates for the start of production and ramp-up.