BioAmber Sarnia Secures $10 Million Interest Free Loan From Agriculture Canada

The loan is a significant milestone for the Sarnia plant and contributes important capital

All amounts are in Canadian dollars.

SARNIA, ON, Feb. 19, 2014 /CNW Telbec/ - BioAmber Inc. (NYSE and EURONEXT Paris: BIOA), an industrial biotechnology company producing sustainable chemicals, today announced that its subsidiary BioAmber Sarnia Inc. has secured a $10 million interest free loan from Agriculture Canada for the 30,000 MT succinic acid plant currently under construction in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada. The loan, which was secured through the Department's Agri-Innovation Program, will be reimbursable in equal yearly installments from 2015 to 2024.

The loan was officially announced today by Minister Gerry Ritz, at an event that took place in Sarnia. The event was also attended by senior representatives of Mitsui & Co., BioAmber's partner in the Sarnia plant, and other government officials at the local, provincial and federal levels.  The event took place on the construction site of the Sarnia plant and showcased the progress being made.

BioAmber Sarnia had previously received $35 million in support from government organizations including Sustainable Development Technology Canada, the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario and the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and Employment.

"We are very appreciative of the support that the Agri-Innovation Program has provided to our Sarnia plant," said Jean-Francois Huc, BioAmber's Chief Executive Officer. "This is a great example of how government can support Canadian farmers, create jobs and reinvigorate the manufacturing sector, while also making a meaningful contribution to climate change," he added. 

"Our government remains focused on creating new opportunities for Canadian farmers and businesses to grow and prosper. BioAmber's innovative project will help enhance the bottom line of producers by using a corn derivative as agricultural feedstock while generating jobs in the Sarnia area," said Canada's Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz.

"We are actively negotiating additional loans for Sarnia that will further ease the investment burden for BioAmber, which is an early stage company.  Our goal is to get Sarnia operational in early 2015 and these loans will help ensure that we have the capital needed to ramp up production and become a profitable company," added Mike Hartmann, BioAmber's Executive Vice President.

About BioAmber

BioAmber (NYSE and EURONEXT Paris: BIOA) is an industrial biotechnology company producing sustainable chemicals. Its proprietary technology platform combines industrial biotechnology and chemical catalysis to convert renewable feedstock into sustainable chemicals for use in a wide variety of everyday products including plastics, resins, food additives and personal care products. For more information visit www.bio-amber.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements related to the timing of the completion of our planned facility, our goal of securing additional loans and becoming a profitable company.   All statements other than statements of historical fact contained in this press release are forward-looking statements.  These statements often include words such as "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "estimate," "seek," "will," "may" or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which involve factors or circumstances that are beyond BioAmber's control. BioAmber's actual results could differ materially from those stated or implied in forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including but not limited to, risks detailed in BioAmber's most recent registration statement on Form S-1 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as other documents that may be filed by the Company from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In particular, the following factors, among others, could cause results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements: the Company's limited operating history, the inability of the Company to execute on its manufacturing expansion strategy, including the construction of our planned facility in Sarnia, Ontario, the inability of the Company to comply with milestone covenants contained in certain of its agreements, the Company's limited sales of bio-succinic acid to date, the Company's inability to obtain additional financing, the Company's inability to leverage its bio-succinic acid technology to develop and commercialize derivatives of bio-succinic acid and other bio-based building block chemicals, and a decrease in demand for bio-succinic acid, bio-based 1,4 BDO and other bio-succinic acid derivatives.  Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee that the events and circumstances reflected in the forward-looking statements will be achieved or occur and the timing of events and circumstances and actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. All such statements speak only as of the date made, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE: BioAmber Inc.

BioAmber Investor Contact

Michael Rice
LifeSci Advisors, LLC
1350 Avenue of the Americas 28^th Floor
New York, NY 10019
646-597-6979
[email protected]