Reasons To Invest

From the food you eat and the supplements you take to the biofuels powering our future and the cosmetics redefining beauty, microalgae are everywhere and the demand for them is huge.

• First Mover Advantage:
  AlgaeHive™ is among the first pioneering companies transforming microalgae production. Their fast-to-market, modular, and efficient growing systems offer a groundbreaking approach to scaling this essential resource.

• Exceptional Market Potential:
  Globally, the algae industry generates around $13.3B USD. Yet, as Agrifutures highlights, local demand is outstripping supply. According to an Agrifutures spokesperson: “There are not enough growers or sufficient algae volume to meet both local and international market needs.” AlgaeHive™ is well-positioned to bridge this gap with its advanced technology.

• Industry Disrupting Technology:
  Traditional methods of microalgae cultivation, such as open pond systems and photobioreactors, face significant challenges with quality, delays, and efficiency. AlgaeHive™’s innovative technology overcomes these issues with scalable, efficient, and sustainable solutions, revolutionising the economics of microalgae production.

• Health, Environment and Sustainability Impacts:
  AlgaeHive™’s applications have far-reaching impacts, enhancing plant, animal, and human health. Their solutions address critical challenges across agriculture, wellness, and sustainability, offering strong long-term growth potential while contributing to significant environmental improvements.

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The Problem

Microalgae are essential to the pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, cosmetic, bioplastics, biofuels, and food/feed industries, with hundreds of applications worldwide. However, conventional production methods are cumbersome, capital-intensive, and prone to quality issues.

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Our Solution

 Founded less than five years ago, AlgaeHive™ is on a mission to revolutionise the microalgae industry. Our proprietary AlgaeHive™ bioreactor optimises microalgae growth in a controlled environment, dramatically reducing land and water usage compared to traditional open pond systems.

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The Opportunity

The microalgae industry is expected to experience significant growth in the coming years, driven by rising awareness of climate change, health concerns, and the push for sustainable agriculture.

The AlgaeHive™ system changes the game. Instead of open ponds, we grow microalgae in a closed, controlled environment on a surface, harvesting it as a paste. This eliminates the costly dewatering process, cuts land and water use, reduces contamination risks, and ensures consistent, high-quality production.

Every single time.

This crowdfunding campaign will enable AlgaeHive™ to establish additional trial sites, accelerate research, and prepare for market entry, with a target to commercialise our bioreactor by 2025.

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Business Model

AlgaeHive™ is currently in the pre-revenue stage and will operate on a licensing model. We will lease our bioreactors to forward-thinking, innovative microalgae producers seeking to upgrade from traditional systems.

Our bioreactors require less land, water, and energy, with significantly lower capital expenditure (CAPEX) and faster setup compared to current industry methods. This allows our commercial partners to produce cleaner, more efficient microalgae at a lower cost and in less time.

Revenue will be generated through royalties on the microalgae sales made by our licensees, as well as leasing fees for the bioreactors.

AlgaeHive™’s market strategy involves using funds raised to develop commercial-scale modules for testing. These tests will serve as case studies to demonstrate the technology's benefits, driving adoption. We plan to use royalty revenue to offset manufacturing and expansion costs.

 

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Our Process

Our AlgaeHive™ technology delivers multiple solutions, enhancing production capacity and reducing the cost per kilo of microalgae. 

Step 1: Preparation

• Microalgae cultures are grown in a lab and concentrated to be ready for use in the bioreactor.

Step 2: Introduction to the Bioreactor

• The concentrated microalgae are added to the bioreactor, which is designed for efficient growth.
• A special system provides nutrients and CO₂ to the microalgae.

Step 3: Growth Process

• The microalgae attach to surfaces inside the bioreactor, growing densely in a controlled environment.
• The system maintains optimal conditions for consistent growth.

Step 4: Continuous Growth

• The bioreactor runs continuously, providing everything the microalgae need to grow around the clock.
• Key factors are monitored and adjusted to keep growth on track.

Step 5: Harvesting

• Once ready, the microalgae are gently harvested and collected as a concentrated product.

Step 6: Post-Harvest Processing

• The harvested microalgae are dried and processed into various products.

Step 7: Regrowth

• After harvesting, the remaining microalgae continue to grow, starting the cycle again.

Step 8: Scaling Up

• The system’s design allows for easy expansion to meet growing production demands.

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Partnerships and Successful Trials

AlgaeHive™ has partnered with Flinders University and the Marine Bioproducts Cooperative Research Centre (MB CRC), both of which have provided significant research support and expertise in marine biotechnology. Currently, AlgaeHive™ is 26 months into a $1.2 million, 36 month project. This collaboration has been instrumental in advancing our understanding of microalgae cultivation and refining our AlgaeHive™ bioreactor technology.

Trials have been centred around assessing the efficiency, scalability, and sustainability potential of the AlgaeHive™ system, with key observations confirming the following:

• Growth Rate Potential: The trials indicated that the AlgaeHive™ system could achieve promising microalgae growth rates when compared to traditional open pond systems. By optimising light, carbon, and nutrient delivery within a controlled environment, an accelerated growth cycle and enhanced biomass yield during lab-scale experiments can be expected.

• Biofilm Formation and Harvesting: The AlgaeHive™ bioreactor demonstrated effectiveness in promoting biofilm formation on illuminated surfaces. The harvesting method, which utilises gentle vertical vibrations, showed potential in efficiently removing and collecting biofilm as a concentrated paste, potentially reducing the need for dewatering.

Sustainability Indicators: The trials suggested notable sustainability advantages, such as lower water and land usage. The closed bioreactor environment appeared to minimise contamination risks and support continuous operation, which could contribute to the system's overall efficiency.

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The Industry & Competitive Advantage

Our AlgaeHive™ technology introduces a never-seen-before scale and efficiency to the Microalgae industry. As a direct comparison, our systems outperform Open Pond and Photo-bioreactor systems across key areas:

Internationally, a large number of major microalgae producers are located in China, Taiwan, India, and the USA. In Australia, there are around 10 microalgae companies, with one multinational company dominating most of the country's production.

Most of these companies rely on open pond or tubular bioreactor methods, which lack the cost-efficiency benefits offered by AlgaeHive™ technology.

This presents a substantial opportunity for AlgaeHive™ to diversify and expand the Australian microalgae industry, using our competitive edge to drive sustainable, profitable commercial production.

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Use of Funds

AlgaeHive™ will utilise the funds raised to;

1. Run Trial Sites and Validate Technology:
   AlgaeHive™ aims to establish trial sites to demonstrate the effectiveness of our AlgaeHive™ bioreactor systems in real-world conditions. Raising capital will enable us to set up and operate these trial sites, gather critical performance data, and validate our technology before full market entry. This will provide potential customers and partners with the confidence they need to adopt our solution.

2. Accelerating Research and Development:
   To ensure our technology is market-ready, we need to continue refining and optimising our bioreactors. The funds will support R&D efforts focused on enhancing efficiency, reducing costs, and developing new applications for microalgae. This will position us to address specific industry needs and make a compelling case for our product's value in diverse markets.

3. Preparing for Market Entry and Penetration:
   As we approach market entry, raising capital will allow us to build a strong foundation for launching our product. This includes creating strategic marketing campaigns, forming key partnerships, and establishing distribution networks. By securing these funds, we can ensure a successful entry into the market and quickly scale our presence in targeted industries.

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Risks

Funding and Cash Flow:
The Company is in the process of raising funds to achieve its strategic business objectives and to cover its projected operating expenses. The Company may not raise all of the required funding and therefore not achieve all of its business objectives.  This means that the current cash reserves (plus proceeds of the Offer) may not provide the Company with sufficient working capital. Accordingly, the Company may need to obtain additional funding in the future. There is no assurance that the Company will be able to obtain additional rounds of funding on substantially the same terms as outlined in this Offer Document or at all. The Company’s value may be materially affected if the required additional funding is not available. 

Increasing Competition: The Company operates in the Algae industry. The growing market could attract new competitors or lead to existing ones innovating, potentially decreasing AlgaeHive™’s market share.

Production Capacity: With successful uptake and expansion, the Company will need to scale operations in line with demand. This requires careful management to avoid inefficiencies and customer dissatisfaction.

Retention of Key Staff: The Company is susceptible to the untimely loss of key personnel who are considered critical to the success of the Company. If key personnel were to leave the organisation, they would need to be replaced in a timely fashion in order for the Company to achieve its business objectives. 

Technology Risk: The Company utilises technology across aspects of its business. If any technologies were to fail without notice, or a significant issue were to occur, it could interrupt the Company’s ability to provide services to or communicate with customers, which could impact revenue, profitability and/or adversely impact its reputation. 

Supplier Risk: The Company is aware that it is reliant on maintaining existing supplier relationships to provide its services and that failure to maintain such relationships may impact on its ability to provide services. 

Dilution Risk: If, in the future, the Company undertakes further funding activities, a shareholder’s interest may be diluted (if they do not participate in future fundraising rounds).

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About Swarmer

Swarmer is an Australian equity crowdfunding platform connecting businesses and investors. Designed to support start-ups, growth companies and scale-ups we allow everyday investors to own a share in businesses that are the future. We hold Australian Financial Services License (AFS License #507867). 

Find out more about becoming a shareholder via Equity Crowd Funding.