On Wednesday, Booster Fuels, the energy delivery technology startup whose backers include Invus Opportunities, Enterprise Holdings Ventures, Maveron, Perot Jain and others, announced a first-of-its kind strategic partnership. Booster has joined forces with listed company Renewable Energy Group (REG), one of the largest North American producers of biodiesel, to provide mobile delivery of renewable diesel, biodiesel and blended fuels.
Under the new partnership, REG’s UltraClean Blend bio-based, lower carbon-emitting diesel will be delivered to customers via Booster’s proprietary trucks, last-mile technology platform, and certified drivers. REG will also provide tank and terminal infrastructure, GHG emissions reduction measurement, and end user tank solutions.The partnership began operating in California‘s San Francisco Bay Area and Orange County in August, and may potentially scale nationwide. As part of the strategic partnership, REG has become an investor in Booster, and will be Booster’s exclusive supplier of bio-based diesel.
“This new service will let companies seamlessly transition their fleets to much lower-emission fuels with no equipment or infrastructure costs,” said Booster CEO and Co-Founder Frank Mycroft.“Our partnership with REG will provide fleet operators with an ‘easy button’ to solve their sustainability, energy reliability and operational efficiency needs. Combining Booster and REG capabilities also offers fleet managers the data and intelligence required to meet increasingly ambitious environmental standards and business optimization targets.”
“This collaboration is a perfect match for us, bringing together two innovative, sustainable solutions and building on our downstream strategy to reach customers and provide a first-class experience,” said REG Senior Vice President Bob Kenyon. “The energy transition is happening and this is the right place and right time for customers to adopt bio-based diesel and immediately reduce emissions in an easy and efficient manner. Our investment in Booster solidifies our commitment to enabling consumers with the ability to access clean fuel choices.”
Figures from S&P Global supplied by Booster forecast 2021 U.S. biodiesel production at 750 million gallons, up 36 percent year-on-year. By 2022, that figure is expected to reach 2 billion gallons, almost 4 times 2020 levels, and reaching 4.081 billion annual gallons by 2025 (760 percent above 2020 levels). REG, which operates 12 biorefineries in the U.S. and Europe, produced 519 million gallons of renewable fuels in 2020, which it says yielded 4.2 million metric tons of carbon reduction.
In addition to gaining a new investor in REG, Booster–which has to date raised $108 million in venture capital–has a new enterprise client among its roster of investors. Enterprise Holdings, whose venture capital arm, Enterprise Holdings Ventures, is a Booster booster, is a customer, and its affiliate, Enterprise Fleet Management, partners with Booster to deliver fuel services to small-to-medium sized fleets.
“We applaud Booster and REG for expanding service to include diverse renewable products that help existing fleets reduce environmental impact and realize their sustainability goals. This innovation is an essential component to the important vehicle decisions fleet operators make,” said Brice Adamson, Executive Vice President, Enterprise Fleet Management.
