ENGLEWOOD, Colo., Aug. 8, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Gevo, Inc.
(NASDAQ: GEVO), a leading renewable chemicals and next-generation
biofuels company, said today that the latest lawsuit filed by
Butamax™ Advanced Biofuels LLC (Butamax) alleging
infringement by Gevo of Butamax's U.S. Patent No. 8,222,017 ('017
Patent), like the last one filed by Butamax against Gevo, will be
shown to have no merit. Gevo said it is also challenging the
validity of Butamax's '017 Patent.
"We don't infringe the enzyme claimed in Butamax's patent," said
Brett Lund, Executive Vice President
and General Counsel of Gevo. "Gevo previously developed and
patented a modified E. coli KARI enzyme, and since then, our
technology has advanced well beyond this. Our industry-leading
process now utilizes an enzyme that is not derived from, or in any
way related, to the E. coli KARI enzyme described in the
newly issued patent. We provided proof of our non-infringement to
Butamax and they still sued us."
"We also challenge the validity of the just-issued Butamax
patent. We strongly believe that Gevo was the first to invent the
claimed subject matter," Lund said. "Therefore, we have filed a
'Request for Interference' (Serial No. 13/271,084) with the U.S.
Patent and Trademark Office to demonstrate that the technology is,
in fact, a Gevo invention. Gevo's technology represents the
industry standard for the optimization of the native yeast
isobutanol pathway. Our commitment to innovation is what sustains
this leadership position. We see this unfounded lawsuit as another
attempt by Butamax to stall our significant advances in the
commercialization of renewable isobutanol."
"This lawsuit is part and parcel of an ongoing effort by Butamax
and its corporate parents, DuPont and British Petroleum, to divert
attention from the well-established fact that much of Butamax's
technology is based on invalid patents and that Gevo is the real
innovator in this field," he said.
"The timing of Butamax's new litigation is curious, to say the
least, coming the day before our quarterly earnings call," Lund
said. "It also appears retaliatory, coming late on the same day we
announced we were filing a motion for a preliminary injunction to
halt their ongoing infringement of a Gevo patent."
"In April, the highly respected Biofuels Digest wrote, 'you be
the judge on the merits of the timing, right in the middle of
Gevo's IPO road show, Butamax sued Gevo over infringement of the
patents.' Butamax also has initiated litigation timed to coincide
with Gevo's secondary offering, and filed reexamination requests at
the USPTO timed to coincide with the announcement of the startup of
Gevo's commercial-scale production facility in Minnesota. Many other such
juxtapositions have occurred. We don't think it's coincidental. We
believe this latest litigation, like all prior Butamax lawsuits, is
without merit."
About Gevo
Gevo is converting existing ethanol plants into biorefineries to
make renewable building block products for the chemical and fuel
industries. The Company plans to convert renewable raw materials
into isobutanol and renewable hydrocarbons that can be directly
integrated on a "drop-in" basis into existing chemical and fuel
products to deliver environmental and economic benefits. Gevo is
committed to a sustainable biobased economy that meets society's
needs for plentiful food and clean air and water. For more
information, visit www.gevo.com
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release may constitute
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking
statements include statements that are not purely statements of
historical fact, and can sometimes be identified by our use of
terms such as "intend," "expect," "plan," "estimate," "future,"
"strive" and similar words. These forward-looking statements are
made on the basis of the current beliefs, expectations and
assumptions of the management of Gevo and are subject to
significant risks and uncertainty. Investors are cautioned not to
place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements. All
such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are
made, and the company undertakes no obligation to update or revise
these statements, whether as a result of new information, future
events or otherwise. Although the company believes that the
expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are
reasonable, these statements involve many risks and uncertainties
that may cause actual results to differ materially from what may be
expressed or implied in these forward-looking statements. For a
further discussion of risks and uncertainties that could cause
actual results to differ from those expressed in these
forward-looking statements, as well as risks relating to the
business of Gevo in general, see the risk disclosures in the Annual
Report on Form 10-K of Gevo for the year ended December 31, 2011, as amended, and in subsequent
reports on Forms 10-Q and 8-K and other filings made with the SEC
by Gevo.
SOURCE Gevo, Inc.