On July 11, Biotech innovation startup String Bio announced that it is raising a $20 million Series B round from companies including Woodside, Ankur Capital, Dare Ventures, Redstart and Zenfold Ventures.

The startup has also entered into a strategic development agreement with Woodside Energy Technologies, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the global energy company Woodside Energy Group (Woodside).

String Bio has built a technology platform that utilizes advances in biology, fermentation technology, chemistry and process engineering to convert the energy in methane into various value-added products. These products include protein ingredients for nutrition, innovative crop inputs and products with biodegradable polymers.

Dr Ezhil Subbian, Co-founder and CEO of String Bio, said: “String’s vision is to leverage cutting-edge advances in biotechnology to achieve a better life with a significantly reduced environmental footprint. With the Woodside collaboration and Series B funding, we’re taking a big step forward in bringing such solutions to the fore of the market – better solutions for people and the planet”.

Woodside Energy CEO Meg O’Neill added that the investment in String Bio builds on the ability to potentially reduce greenhouse gas emissions by converting carbon into useful products. “We believe String Bio’s technology could eventually be used to recover methane at the Woodside facility. It could also be deployed at third-party sites with available biomethane, such as landfill facilities and farms,” O’Neill added.