Dennis McGinn, Assistant Secretary of the Navy, to Deliver Remarks at the 2016 World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology

Washington, D.C. (March 04, 2016) – The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) is pleased to announce that the Honorable Dennis McGinn, Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Energy, Installations & Environment, will address biofuel and biorefining technology developers. McGinn will provide remarks during the “Overcoming Challenges to Biorefinery Scale Up” plenary scheduled for 4:30pm on Monday, April 18^th. The 2016 World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology will be held April 17^th-20^th in San Diego, CA at the San Diego Convention Center.

“The United States Department of the Navy has taken bold, determined steps toward energy security, by adopting cost-competitive biofuels and alternative energy sources. The Navy’s leadership has enabled advanced biofuel producers to create partnerships and put steel in the ground for new biorefineries,” said Brent Erickson, executive vice president for BIO’s Industrial & Environmental Section. “We are looking forward to Assistant Secretary McGinn’s remarks about what the U.S. Navy has in store for the future.”

”The United States Navy and Marine Corps are diversifying our energy sources to increase our operational flexibility, which strengthens our ability to provide the global presence that is our mission,” said McGinn. “We’ve purchased drop-in, cost-competitive alternative fuel for our ships and we are helping to grow our domestic alternative fuel industry.”

In 2009, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus established aggressive goals to increase the Department of the Navy’s energy efficiency, decrease its reliance on foreign sources of oil, and diversify its shore and operational energy supplies. On January 20, 2016, Secretary Mabus kicked off the Great Green Fleet (GGF), a year-long initiative highlighting the Navy’s efforts to transform its energy use to increase operational capability. The GGF centerpiece, the John C. Stennis Carrier Strike Group, deployed using an advanced biofuel blend and energy efficient technologies and operational procedures in the course of its normal operations.

Monday’s “Overcoming Challenges to Biorefinery Scale Up” General Plenary Session will address what is needed to ensure the successful scale up of a commercial industrial biotechnology process. 

The featured panel includes:

Moderator:

• Dan Cummings, Chief Executive Officer, Guidewire Strategies

Speakers:

• Jeff Lievense, Senior Engineering Fellow, Genomatica     
• Dennis McGinn, Assistant Secretary of the Navy - Energy, Installations & Environment, U.S. Department of the Navy     
• Alan Propp, Business Development Manager, Merrick & Company         

All programs at the World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology are open to attendance by members of the media. Complimentary media registration is available to editors and reporters working full time for print, broadcast or web publications with valid press credentials.

For more information on the conference, please visit www.bio.org/worldcongress. For assistance, please contact worldcongress@bio.org.