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  • March 2009 (Revised July 2009)
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KiOR: Catalyzing Clean Energy

By: Ramana Nanda and Toby E. Stuart
  • Format:Print
  • | Pages:23
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Abstract

Biofuels start-up KiOR was developing a proprietary technology that had the potential to dramatically impact the emerging renewable energy landscape: a process that converted cellulosic biomass into "bio-crude," a hydrocarbon mixture with properties to those of crude oil. KiOR had been operating as a virtual organization, but with venture financing in place, founder and chief technology officer Paul O'Connor and the KiOR board needed to decide where to headquarter their business.

Keywords

Business Headquarters; Decision Choices and Conditions; Renewable Energy; Entrepreneurship; Geographic Location

Citation

Nanda, Ramana, and Toby E. Stuart. "KiOR: Catalyzing Clean Energy." Harvard Business School Case 809-092, March 2009. (Revised July 2009.)
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About The Authors

Ramana Nanda

Entrepreneurial Management
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Toby E. Stuart

Strategy
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More from the Authors
  • House Prices, Home Equity and Entrepreneurship: Evidence from U.S. Census Micro Data By: Sari Pekkala Kerr, William R. Kerr and Ramana Nanda
  • Are Transformational Ideas Harder to Fund? Resource Allocation to R&D Projects at a Global Pharmaceutical Firm By: Joshua Krieger and Ramana Nanda
  • Catching Outliers: Committee Voting and the Limits of Consensus when Financing Innovation By: Andrey Malenko, Ramana Nanda, Matthew Rhodes-Kropf and Savitar Sundaresan
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