Series A Fundraising Begins For The Foundation For Industrial Hemp Production & Research

Is This Going To Free Us From Fossil Fuels? Seed-stage firm provides model for lean bio-fuel refinery, 100% solar-powered, highly profitable.

A report published by the IMF on May 18, 2015 states that global energy subsidies are expected to exceed $5.3 trillion total in 2015, or about $10.1 million each minute.

Today is the official announcement that the Foundation for Industrial Hemp Production & Research (FIHPR) is beginning Series A fundraising. Just a few weeks earlier the International Monetary Fund released their estimations for global energy subsidies to exceed $10 million/minute. The significance of these two events is that the FIHPR is seeking just $10 million to establish its first entirely solar powered bio-fuel refinery, meaning that each passing minute is another facility that could be built to create a sustainable energy model.

"The IMF report is yet another reminder that governments around the world are propping up a century-old energy model. Compounding the issue, our research shows that many of the energy subsidies highlighted by the IMF go toward finding new reserves of oil, gas and coal, which we know must be left in the ground if we are to avoid catastrophic, irreversible climate change." - Shelagh Whitley, a subsidies expert at the Overseas Development Institute

Shelagh Whitley, Subsidies Expert at the Overseas Development Institute

According to information provided by the International Energy Agency, global consumption of oil is over 5.3 trillion L/year. Each facility that uses the FIHPR’s lean bio-fuel model will be producing about 40 million L/year, meaning that after only 94 days at that same rate of funding ($10 million/minute) they will have enough to meet (if not surpass) the global demand for oil. 94 days, or about how long it takes for you to start getting benefits at a new full-time job, is all it would take to fund a complete overhaul of our contemporary energy infrastructure.

Not only is the model sustainable, it’s profitable as well. The FIHPR’s cost per gallon processed is less than $1 (for B100), meaning that it can easily compete with the local market price of about $4/gallon (for B20).

Regarding the $10 million ask by the FIHPR, they are offering 33% of the company with an annual 66% return from all retained earnings. One key aspect of their search for an investor is that the motives must align; they are looking for an investor who wants to not only see a (very) attractive return but also wants to see the global impact of their investment. The FIHPR’s approach is explicitly centered on market disruption, as is evident in their entry-strategy undermining the #1 manufacturing industry in the US (petroleum refineries).

Understanding the importance of R&D, the FIHPR hopes to move from production of B100 bio-fuel into refinement of aerospace, marine, commercial and consumer fuels by 2017.

As a solution to the problem at hand, it is not likely that the FIHPR will receive funding at a rate of $10 million/minute but when they get the ball rolling it will be interesting to see how long it takes them to secure their place in the international market.

About FIHPR: The Foundation for Industrial Hemp Production & Research was started in March of 2014 by an undergraduate at the University of Central Florida. With a goal of spreading awareness of “a better way” the young entrepreneur began probing the various entry-strategies, and realized that the most universally consumed commodity (fuels) has been sitting in a stagnated market for decades. In the first quarter of 2015 the FIHPR produced a prototype industrial hemp bio-fuel and generated a comprehensive business portfolio complete with 5-year cost/profit projections, model overview, Board of Advisers and much more.

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Tags: Biofuel, Biotech, Clean Energy, FIHPR, Fossil Fuels, Green Tech, Hemp, Industrial Hemp