San Diego, CA (Dec. 6, 2011) –Sapphire Energy, Inc., one of the world leaders in algae-based crude oil, today announced that the company has been chosen by Forbes for its list of America’s Most Promising Companies, and was also identified as one of 16 early-stage companies to watch, all of which have revenue under $1 million.

 

“We are honored to be identified as one of only 100 elite companies on this new list from Forbes,” said Jason Pyle, Sapphire Energy founder and CEO.   “Founded just four years ago with a mission to develop a renewable source of oil to help wean America from its dependence on petroleum, we are delighted to receive awards of this nature that help us spread the word about the exciting economic potential of growing a new energy crop.”

 

Sapphire Energy cultivates algae that create renewable crude oil that can be processed in existing refineries into jet fuel, diesel and gasoline. These drop-in replacement fuels are molecularly identical to fossil fuels and are compatible with existing infrastructure and engines. 

 

San Diego-based Sapphire Energy is pioneering an entirely new industry – Green Crude Production – with the potential to profoundly change America’s energy and petrochemical landscape for the better. Sapphire’s products and processes in this category differ significantly from other forms of biofuel because they are made solely from photosynthetic microorganisms (algae), using sunlight and CO2 as their feedstock; are not dependent on food crops or valuable farmland; do not use potable water; do not result in biodiesel or ethanol; enhance and replace petroleum-based products; and are low carbon, renewable and scalable. In December 2009, Sapphire was awarded nearly $104.5 million as part of President Obama’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the USDA’s Biorefinery Assistance Program 9003 authorized through the 2008 Farm Bill.