Non - Disclosure Agreement

Madras Christian College (MCC) and Algae Global Innovations Enterprises (ALGIE) Pvt. Ltd. signed a mutual non-disclosure agreement for technology transfer about commercialization of algal technologies developed by MCC on the 12th of April 2023, and the Principal and Secretary of the College, Dr. Paul Wilson, signed the agreement on behalf of the college. Dr. Wilson in his address said “Collaborating with an industry for the technology transfer for one of its patents is the first of its kind in the college. Innovations across the globe on using algae are on the rise, including in green architecture with proposed algae cultivation on buildings for CO2 capture”.

The Department of Microbiology in line with the college policies has been encouraging patenting culture, and Dr. P. Hanumantha Rao, one of the lead inventors of the three patents filed said “Microalgae are one of the promising microorganisms researched in recent years for biofuels, and environmentally sustainable and value-added bioproducts. Immobilized cultivation of microalgae is a very recent concept, where the harvesting costs can be negligible compared to that of conventional algae cultivation methods.”

Mr. Emmanuel, Founder and CEO of ALGIE, in his remarks, said “ALGIE is a company which aims to solve some of the major and pressing issues of humankind like malnutrition, sustainable and high-quality proteins for animal feed, biofuels, climate change, etc., through the use of microalgae. The company has received huge investments from Europe in recent years, and is interested in commercializing the technology developed by MCC for the production of low-cost biomass for feed applications.” Prof. R. Rengasamy, Former Professor of the University of Madras and a renowned algologist was also present during the occasion.

This agreement will pave the way for preparing the immediate road maps for validation and technology transfer of the protected technology, and subsequent commercialization. MCC-MRF Innovation Park (MMIP), the state-of-the-art incubation center of MCC, will help in the technology transfer process.