Comstock Fuels Confirms Biofuel Yields in Excess of 100 Gallons Per Tonne and Carbon Intensity Scores Below 20

VIRGINIA CITY, Nev., Oct. 05, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Comstock Inc. (NYSE: LODE) (“Comstock” and the “Company”) today announced the achievement of two significant milestones, including biofuel production yields of more than 100 gallons per dry tonne of woody biomass as measured on a gasoline gallon equivalent basis (“GGE”), and market-leading, extremely low carbon intensity (“CI”) scores of 15 for Cellulosic Ethanol and the Company’s proprietary Hydrodeoxygenated Bioleum™ Oil (“HBO”).

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HBO is a unique, compliant, drop-in biointermediate that is used in the production of Sustainable Aviation Fuel and Renewable Diesel Fuel. It has been verified to increase the diversity of hydroprocessed, fat-based feedstock and significantly reduce CI scores beyond what is commercially achievable today. The carbon intensity of fossil fuels is industry-benchmarked at between 80 and 95. A score of 15 demonstrates carbon reductions in excess of 80%. The Company will continue to publicly report these milestone achievements in 2024 and beyond as each new advancement is verified.

These advancements are continuing proof points of the Company’s commercial progress. They surpass existing cellulosic-derived biofuel production yields and CI performance scores that biofuel and petroleum refineries can achieve today. They do so by utilizing Comstock's proprietary pathways and by blending HBO within their existing hydroprocessed, fat-based feedstock streams to cost-effectively meet increasing renewable fuels capacity and accelerating demand for extremely low CI biofuels within the rapidly growing 3 billion gallon annual renewable fuel segment of the 228 billion gallon annual transportation fuel market in the U.S.

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The Company projects rapid growth to ultimately provide over 5% hydro-processed fat-based feedstock market representing advanced biofuels produced at more than double the yield of currently approved pathways. Comstock will produce and deliver this new, very low carbon and flexible lignocellulosic feedstock directly to biofuel refining customers through Bioleum™ hubs, where the Company is connecting existing upstream waste wood, Kraft lignin, and forestry residue biomass suppliers to downstream hydro-processing refinery customers. The Company anticipates an announcement regarding the first hub this year.

Extremely Low Caron Intensities and Very High Yields

The Company’s Cellulosic Ethanol and HBO yields have been successfully verified at the Company’s demonstration facilities, confirming process yields of more than 100 GGE, with validated carbon intensity scores at or below 16 for Cellulosic Ethanol and 15 for HBO. To put this into perspective, Comstock Fuels’ yields of over 100 GGE exceeds the U.S. Department of Energy’s production goals of less than 75 GGE per tonne, most recently published in the department’s “2019 R&D State of Technology” report. The Company is currently working with leading biofuel refiners who confirm that 100 GGE is an exceptional commercial milestone and economically beneficial, but it is the CI scores that significantly reduce the carbon footprint of their overall fuel portfolios.

“This achievement significantly raises the bar for cellulosic fuel yields while meaningfully enhancing diversity of feedstocks for producers today,” said Corrado De Gasperis, Comstock’s Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “What’s truly groundbreaking is that leading refiners are confirming that this magnitude of decarbonization coupled with such high yields is a major competitive differentiator. We look forward to sharing these new supply chain announcements in the near future and to continuing the advancements in our yields and CI scores as they are achieved.”

Carbon intensity modeling is conducted using a custom implementation of the GREET model developed by the Company in conjunction with the Company’s third-party engineering consultants. This model, compliant with regulatory requirements, determines the carbon intensity scores of Comstock’s pathways based on the Greenhouse Gases, Regulation Emissions, and Energy Use in Technologies (GREET) Model, the system of carbon lifecycle measurement established by Argonne National Laboratory and readily recognized by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, and by the Environmental Protection Agency’s Renewable Fuel Standard program.

About Comstock Inc.

Comstock (NYSE: LODE) commercializes technologies that enable systemic decarbonization and accelerate the energy transition by efficiently converting under-utilized natural resources into renewable energy products, and by leveraging physics based artificial intelligence for more efficient and effective mineral and materials discovery. To learn more, please visit www.comstock.inc.

Comstock Fuels produces proprietary lignocellulosic feedstock made from cellulosic biomass as compliant, drop-in biointermediate blends to diversify fat-based feedstock portfolios for advanced biofuel refineries. To learn more, please visit www.comstockfuels.com. Comstock Fuels is a wholly owned subsidiary of Comstock Inc.