Enerkem Chief Technology Officer receives 2013 Don Klass Award

MONTREAL, Sept. 5, 2013 /PRNewswire/ - Enerkem Inc. (www.enerkem.com), a waste-to-biofuels and renewable chemicals company, announced today that Dr. Esteban Chornet, its co-founder and Chief Technology Officer, was presented with the 2013 Don Klass Award for Excellence in Thermochemical Conversion Science at the tcbiomass2013 dinner event held last night in Chicago by the Gas Technology Institute. This prestigious award recognizes Dr. Chornet's pioneering technology innovations in the field of bioenergy. 

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130905/MM75019)

"Dr. Chornet is a world-renowned scientist in the area of biomass conversion, and a true inspiration for bridging the gap between research and commercialization", said Conference Co-Chair Vann Bush, Managing Director of the Gas Technology Institute's Energy Conversion Sector. "Dr. Chornet's life work in engineering and science research, academia, and business has notably changed the global bioenergy industry and will surely help enable a sustainable future."

"The vision of creating an industrial breakthrough technology that would produce biofuels and chemicals from waste and residues guided my work at the University of Sherbrooke since the 1970s and throughout the growth of Enerkem as a commercial venture", said Dr. Esteban Chornet, Chief Technology Officer. "I am grateful to receive this award and I share it with my family as well as the entire Enerkem team whose hard work and outstanding accomplishments enabled us to bring our vision to the market."

Enerkem now operates two facilities in Quebec, Canada, and is completing the construction of the world's first full-scale commercial facility to produce biofuels and renewable chemicals from non-recyclable and non-compostable residential waste. This plant is located in Edmonton, Alberta, and will be commissioned in the coming weeks.

From 1970 to 2007, Dr. Chornet was Professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of Sherbrooke in Québec, Canada. From 1993 to 2003, he worked as a Principal Research Engineer at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Colorado, USA. He received the 1984 Steacie Fellowship Award from the Government of Canada and was a 2004 laureate of the Prix Lionel Boulet—the highest technology prize awarded every year by the Government of Quebec. Dr. Chornet is a Fellow of the Chemical Institute of Canada, a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. In 2011, Dr. Chornet was recognized by industry peers as one of the Top 100 People in Bioenergy. Dr. Chornet holds a degree in Industrial Engineering from ETSEIB in Barcelona, Catalunya, Spain, and a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Lehigh University, Pennsylvania, USA.

The Award for Excellence in Thermochemical Conversion Science is a tribute to the notable Dr. Donald L. Klass, who was president and one of the original founders of the Biomass Energy Research Association (BERA). tbcbiomass2013 is the International Conference on Thermochemical Biomass Conversion Science.

About Enerkem
Enerkem makes biofuels and renewable chemicals from waste. With its proprietary technology, Enerkem converts non recyclable municipal solid waste into methanol, ethanol and other widely used chemical intermediates. Headquartered in Canada, Enerkem operates both a demonstration plant and a pilot facility in Quebec. Enerkem is currently building a full-scale waste-to-biofuels facility in Edmonton, Alberta, and is developing similar facilities in North America and globally. Enerkem's technology and facilities help diversify the energy mix and make greener everyday products while offering an alternative to landfilling. www.enerkem.com

SOURCE ENERKEM INC.