Why is Arsenal Footballer Mathieu Flamini Investing in Biofuels?

Biofuel investments are usually reserved for green energy companies and environmentally conscious millionaires. Football stars are one demographic that aren’t generally associated with the eco-friendly fuel revolution. Until now... In a move that’s both shocked and impressed the sports industry, Arsenal’s Mathieu Flamini has been moonlighting as a partner with an up and coming biochemical company.

Thanks to the support of the green minded French footballer, Italian company GFBiochemicals is now armed with a cash injection that could revolutionise the energy industry. With Flamini’s financial support and the industry know how of GFBiochemicals, the pair has come up with a new way to manufacture levulinic acid (LA). Ultimately, this could significantly reduce the world’s dependence on fossil fuels. In turn, this would slash CO2 emissions and slow global warming.

“I was always close to nature and concerned about environmental issues, climate change and global warming,” says Flamini.

A new era of green energy

So what exactly is LA? Also known as 4-oxopentanoic acid or CH3C(O)CH2CH2CO2H, LA is an organic compound that could be used as a forerunner to the biofuel switch. It’s already been hailed by the US Department of Energy as one of just 12 molecules that has the potential to completely replace petrol.

Using Flamini’s capital, GFBiochemicals has pioneered a method of mass producing LA. It’s taken millions of pounds, years of research, countless trials and a handful of major scientific breakthroughs. Now all the hard work has paid off. Today, the Caserta based plant employs 80 people who oversee the synthesis of LA from biomass waste.

“After several months, we came up with the technology of how to produce LA on an industrial scale,” explains Flamini. “We patented it.”

A cash friendly venture

Of course, ROI is also a key factor, with Flamini standing to make £20 billion if the venture goes to plan. One of the reasons the investment could offer Flamini such a substantial payoff is the fact that LA is an extremely diverse chemical. As well as biofuels it can also be used in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, plastics, food preservatives and a myriad of other applications.

“We are opening a new market,” says Flamini. “And it’s a market potentially worth £20bn.”

For more insight into the world of eco-friendly science, ‘BIO International 2013 Review’ is a must read article.  It offers readers a glimpse into the annual BIO International Convention, organised and hosted by the Biotechnology Industry Organization.

Image via Flickr Creative Commons. Photo credits: Sara Zizza