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Gevo and Blocksize Capital developing blockchain tech for tracking sustainability of renewable products

Published: 09:40 05 Nov 2019 EST

Gevo Inc - Gevo and Blocksize Capital developing blockchain tech for tracking sustainability of renewable products
Gevo said that it is possible to use distributed ledger technology to attach the key metrics for sustainability to gallons of fuel

Gevo Inc (NASDAQ:GEVO), a leading renewable fuels and chemicals manufacturer, announced Tuesday that it has inked a development agreement with Blocksize Capital GmbH, a blockchain technology company in Germany. 

In a statement, Gevo said that it is possible to use distributed ledger technology (DLT) to attach the “key metrics for sustainability” to gallons of fuel and enable “a sustainability assurance that has not yet been seen.” 

Gevo said the data associated with certain key metrics for measuring sustainability are suitable for being digitized through blockchain. After all, Bitcoin's technology endoskeleton, blockchain technology is an immutable tool that allows the tracking of data with a product and the transactions associated with the product.

READ: Gevo is a “low-carbon” company developing renewable diesel, jet fuel alternatives

“For years, we have been tracking the sustainability of the farms, and their farming practices, that supply products to our facilities, and we need to continue to do so as we expand,” said Gevo CEO Patrick Gruber in a statement.

“We also track the amount and type of energy used in the production of our products. An end user who buys fuel should be able to simply access the data and know where those gallons originated and what the sustainability profile looks like,” he added.

Measure, then improve

The Gevo boss pointed out that one of the key principles of sustainability is to measure, then improve.  

“Distributed ledger technology will enable us to sort out what truly is valuable in the end market, assigning the correct value to it, and then set up market mechanisms to share value upstream in the value chain. We want to create a system that rewards the value chain for improving its sustainability,” noted Gruber.

“Done right, we should be able to bring some of that value back to the farmer creating rewards for managing sustainability in agriculture. Obviously, we’ll target our ethanol, isobutanol, isooctane, and jet fuel first, but this type of tokenization system could be applied to protein and feed, as well as chemicals, and food production too.”

Gevo is a next-generation “low-carbon” fuel company focused on the development and commercialization of renewable alternatives to petroleum-based products. The Englewood, Colorado-based company is developing gasoline and jet fuel using renewable feedstocks that have the potential to lower greenhouse gas emissions at a meaningful scale and enhance agricultural production, including food and other related products.

The group has developed a breakthrough process that converts a high-octane fuel called isobutanol into clean, renewable diesel.

“It isn’t lost on us that this type of blockchain technology has enormous potential beyond Gevo and its business system,” said Gruber.

“A DLT system like the one we are developing with Blocksize is suitable for any type of business that needs to track sustainability attributes using agriculture or forestry to generate raw materials for the production of food, chemicals, feed, and fuels,” he added.

According to a Stanford University study evaluating blockchain’s social impact, agriculture is one of the “essential areas” of impact with several use cases for DLT-based applications.

“Very low carbon or net zero-emission renewable fuels are a good place to start the development of these types of software and tools,” said Blocksize Capital GmbH founder and managing director Christoph Impekoven. “We are beyond excited to be the trusted partner to lead the path and open new opportunities for these businesses, along with such a forward-thinking organization as Gevo.” 

Contact Uttara Choudhury at uttara@proactiveinvestors.com

Follow her on Twitter: @UttaraProactive 

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