BOULDER, CO – OPX Biotechnologies Inc. has raised $36.5 million in the first closing of its C-Round private equity financing. The investment will accelerate OPXBIO’s development and commercialization of renewable, bio-based chemicals and fuels that offer lower cost, higher return and are more sustainable than existing petroleum-based products. US Renewables Group (USRG) led the C-Round investor syndicate, which also included new investor DBL Investors with strong participation by existing investors Mohr Davidow Ventures, Braemar Energy Ventures, Altira Group and X/Seed Capital. The company also announced that USRG Managing Director Jonathan Koch has joined the OPXBIO Board of Directors.

The new investment will enable OPXBIO to accelerate development and commercialization of an industrial-scale process for producing its first renewable chemical, BioAcrylic. During an 18-month pilot-scale program completed in early 2011, OPXBIO demonstrated the ability of its proprietary EDGE™ (Efficiency Directed Genome Engineering) technology to make performance-equivalent BioAcrylic that is lower cost and more sustainable than petroleum-based acrylic. OPXBIO has established a joint development agreement with The Dow Chemical Co. to collaborate on the large-scale demonstration of the process for BioAcrylic production. OPXBIO anticipates full commercialization within three to five years.