Biotech startup Arkeon, which transforms CO2 into functional protein ingredients, has commissioned a pilot production plant in Vienna’s Seestadt Innovation Hub.

Arkeon has successfully raised over €10 million in capital to date to build out its technology for the direct conversion of carbon dioxide into protein ingredients.

The recently commissioned plant represents a “significant step forward” for further development of its production process and infrastructure expansion, Arkeon said.

Equipped with a 150L bioreactor system, it serves to progressively improve the process and aims to lay a solid biotechnological foundation for future large-scale production. The plant was built in collaboration with Steamtec, Böhm Stadtbaumeister & Gebäudetechnik GmbH and Kanzler-Dach among others.

According to Arkeon, the achieved capacity of 150L forms the foundation for the next step of the scaling plan – a demo facility with a 3000L bioreactor system.

Günther Bochmann, technological project lead of Arkeon said: “The successful implementation of our pilot production plant represents a solid basis and illustrates that our company has set up the technical foundation to unlock our production technology at large scale. It is an essential step on our way to scale to large commercial production outputs.”

Last week, the Vienna Business Agency initiated the construction of the Technology Centre Seestadt. The project aims to provide additional production and office space for innovative startups, including Arkeon, and its upcoming demo facility plans.

The commissioning of the 3000L bioreactor is scheduled for the end of 2024 and is expected to mark the company’s entry into commercial production capacity. Arkeon said it plans to expand its production to full-scale bioreactors with volumes of 800 – 1,000 m3.

The company has confirmed that partnerships have already been established with global companies to develop new and innovative protein applications for functional food and beverage products for the food industry.

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