KiOR, Inc. was a renewable fuels company focused on the development and commercialization of cellulosic biofuels. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, the company set out to convert non-food biomass into gasoline and diesel blendstocks using proprietary technologies. KiOR’s mission was to produce drop-in fuels that could integrate seamlessly with existing petroleum infrastructure and help reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector.
The company’s core technology combined fast pyrolysis with catalytic upgrading to break down lignocellulosic feedstocks such as southern pine, wood residues and agricultural wastes. In a first step, biomass was rapidly heated in the absence of oxygen to produce a bio-oil. That bio-oil was then refined through a fixed-bed catalytic reactor to remove oxygen, increase hydrogen content and yield hydrocarbon molecules similar to those found in conventional transportation fuels. KiOR’s pilot facility in Whiteville, North Carolina, and subsequent demonstration plant in Columbus, Mississippi, were designed to validate these processes at progressively larger scales.
At its Columbus facility, KiOR aimed to produce up to 15 million gallons of cellulosic gasoline and diesel annually, sourcing feedstock locally and targeting markets along the U.S. Gulf Coast. The company also explored licensing its technology to strategic partners in North America, Europe and Asia, positioning itself as both a producer and technology provider. KiOR emphasized sustainability by utilizing underutilized forest byproducts and agricultural residues, seeking to create a closed-loop supply chain that minimized waste and land‐use impacts.
Founded in 2007 with backing from Vinod Khosla’s venture capital firm, KiOR was led in its early years by CEO Fred Cannon, formerly of Genencor International. The management team included executives with experience in biotechnology, engineering and chemical processing. Despite significant funding and technological milestones, KiOR faced operational challenges and ultimately filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in late 2014, marking the end of its commercial operations in the cellulosic biofuels sector.
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