Algae Fuel Company That Exxon Once Bankrolled Finds New Funders

For over a decade, Viridos Inc. was the centerpiece of <-bsp-bb-link state="{"bbHref":"bbg://securities/XOM%20US%20Equity","_id":"00000186-da78-dd6f-adaf-dafa5d040000","_type":"0000016b-944a-dc2b-ab6b-d57ba1cc0000"}">Exxon Mobil Corp.’s heavily advertised push to develop climate-friendly biofuels from algae. The oil major <-bsp-bb-link state="{"bbDocId":"RPUZSPT1UM12","_id":"00000186-da78-dd6f-adaf-dafa5d040001","_type":"0000016b-944a-dc2b-ab6b-d57ba1cc0000"}">slashed its support for the company last year. Now Viridos, based in La Jolla, California, has secured funding from a new group of backers.

Viridos announced on Monday a $25 million round of financing from <-bsp-bb-link state="{"bbHref":"bbg://people/profile/1390479","_id":"00000186-da78-dd6f-adaf-dafa5d050000","_type":"0000016b-944a-dc2b-ab6b-d57ba1cc0000"}">Bill Gates-led Breakthrough Energy Ventures, with <-bsp-bb-link state="{"bbHref":"bbg://securities/UAL%20US%20Equity","_id":"00000186-da78-dd6f-adaf-dafa5d050001","_type":"0000016b-944a-dc2b-ab6b-d57ba1cc0000"}">United Airlines Holdings Inc. and <-bsp-bb-link state="{"bbHref":"bbg://securities/CVX%20US%20Equity","_id":"00000186-da78-dd6f-adaf-dafa5d050002","_type":"0000016b-944a-dc2b-ab6b-d57ba1cc0000"}">Chevron Corp. also participating. The funding will support Viridos’s ongoing quest to boost the productivity of its algae as it aims to develop low-carbon fuels for heavy-duty transportation, including ...