MADISON, WI – Virent has appointed Edgar Steenwinkel to be the company’s Vice President of Research and Development. Steenwinkel will lead technology development efforts of Virent’s BioForming^® platform in preparation for commercialization of its biofuel and biobased chemicals.

Steenwinkel joins Virent from Albemarle, where he served as Global Business Director for Alternative Fuels Technologies. At Albemarle, he led multiple global development and commercialization efforts for catalysts and other new products for biobased transportation fuels. Steenwinkel has over 20 years of demonstrated success in research and development, manufacturing, and building new global business groups.

Virent, Madison, WI, is creating chemicals and fuels using a range of naturally occurring, renewable resources. Its patented technology features catalytic chemistry to convert plant-based materials into a full range of products identical to those made from petroleum, including gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, and chemicals for plastics and fibers.