Verenium Corporation Announces Up to $16 Million in New Secured Financings

SAN DIEGO, Oct. 20, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Verenium Corporation (Nasdaq:VRNM - News), a leading industrial biotechnology company developing and commercializing high-performance enzymes, today announced that it has entered into an agreement with Comerica Bank and the Export-Import Bank of the United States ("Ex-Im Bank") for two 18-month, secured revolving credit facilities totaling up to $13 million.

These new credit facilities will allow the Company to borrow up to $10 million against its eligible foreign receivables, and up to $3 million against its eligible domestic receivables and inventory. Borrowings under the facilities will bear interest at the daily LIBOR plus 6%. The proceeds of these facilities will be used for general working capital purposes.

Separately, the Company has also put in place a facility for up to $3 million in secured equipment financing to help support the planned build-out of its research and bioprocess development laboratories and corporate headquarters in San Diego.

"We are very pleased with the flexibility these new facilities provide the Company, and that we have addressed a portion of our financing needs with non-dilutive sources of capital," said Jeffrey Black, Chief Financial Officer at Verenium. "These credit facilities allow us to utilize existing assets to support the general working capital needs of the Company, and will provide us with available borrowing capacity to support the anticipated growth of our sales. In addition, the structure of these facilities will enable us to leverage certain additional assets, including our intellectual property, for additional secured financing."

About Verenium

Verenium, an industrial biotechnology company, is a global leader in developing high-performance enzymes. Verenium's tailored enzymes are environmentally friendly, making products and processes greener and more cost-effective for industries, including the global food and fuel markets. Read more at www.verenium.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release that are not strictly historical are "forward-looking" and involve a high degree of risk and uncertainty. These include, but are not limited to, statements related to Verenium's ability to borrow under its new credit facilities and other financing commitment, its financing needs and the extent to which its new credit facilities and other financing commitment address those needs, its ability to obtain additional financing, its lines of business, operations, capabilities, commercialization activities, corporate partnerships, target markets and future financial performance, results and objectives, all of which are prospective. Such statements are only predictions, and actual events or results may differ materially from those projected in such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to the differences include, but are not limited to, risks associated with Verenium's ability to generate adequate receivables and inventory to enable it to access its new credit facilities in desired amounts, ability to maintain compliance with its covenants and other obligations contained in the new credit facilities and other financing commitment, strategic focus, technologies, ability to obtain additional financing to support its planned operations and financial obligations, dependence on patents and proprietary rights, protection and enforcement of its patents and proprietary rights, the commercial prospects of the industries in which Verenium operates and sells products, Verenium's dependence on manufacturing and/or license agreements, its ability to achieve milestones under existing and future collaboration agreements, the ability of Verenium and its partners to commercialize its technologies and products (including by obtaining any required regulatory approvals) using Verenium's technologies, the timing for launching any commercial products and projects, the ability of Verenium and its collaborators to market and sell any products that it or they commercialize, the development or availability of competitive products or technologies, the future ability of Verenium to enter into and/or maintain collaboration and joint venture agreements and licenses, and risks and other uncertainties more fully described in Verenium's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, but not limited to, Verenium's annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010 and any updates contained in its subsequently filed quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof, and Verenium expressly disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

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