BIOCURE - Unique Georgian Rechnology in the World Against Oil Pollution
BIOCURE is a unique technology in the world, which was developed in Georgia and aims to eliminate the problem of oil pollution in the world.
Mariam Mchedlishvili-Todua started working on universal technology, then continued with the support of Paata Mchedlishvili. Solomon Tsabadze joined them in 2006 after clearing an area contaminated with oil spilled on 140 hectares during the explosion of the Ninotsminda well. In 2018, Temo Rukhaia was added to the team and the goal was to bring the technology to the global market.
Unique technology has been developed in Georgia for years, first in the university space, and then in a private research laboratory. At the last stage of technology development, in order to prove the technology, the laboratory conducted field tests and pilot projects, after which the team evaluated the potential of the technology and realized that the Georgian market was not sufficient for rapid development. In 2019, the team joined the pre-accelerator program and developed a business model relevant to their unique approach that would enable them to grow rapidly and enter the global market effectively. Officially, BIOCURE was founded on May 1, 2019 and won the GITA grant with the highest rating in 4 months. The year 2020 started with a study of the American market and meetings with investors. At this stage, the company already has several demonstration projects planned in Georgia and Europe. Also, important negotiations are underway with one of the American companies.
"The uniqueness of BIOCURE lies in the approach by which we identify / find local oil destructive bacteria at the site of contamination, multiply them in a bioreactor and return them to the site of contamination as a liquid biopreparation. For each contamination, we create a unique product, but through our patented technology, we do so very quickly and equally efficiently. The universality of BIOCURE is also determined by the very approach we always use in local bacterial cultures. They are already adapted to the environment and are distinguished by higher efficiency. Also, our approach is the most harmless to the environment and its use is recommended in protected areas and reserves. The use of local bacterial cultures allows us to clean the soil, freshwater or sea water in the same way, and to clean almost all types of petroleum products with high efficiency. With the help of BIOCURE, we allow oil pollution companies to use only one universal method and avoid the need for special equipment and high-level specialists, "- explains Temo Rukhaia.
The efficiency of BIOCURE technology and the product side are fully proven. At this stage, the company is already trying to confirm the effectiveness of the business model by implementing pilot projects with cleaning companies, or to detect a problem in order to make changes to it quickly.
The main challenge is the inflexibility of the industry.
As one of the top ten companies in the world told Entrepreneur at one of the conferences on oil pollution, "It sounds very good to be true." It is an industry that has been brushed-up for many decades, which does not like new players and does not want to bother itself, ”said Temo Rukhaia.
Despite the unpredictable and difficult situation caused by the pandemic in the world, BIOCURE is not going to stop and is stubbornly trying to adapt to all this. Their current plan is to implement several pilot projects with reputable companies to ensure the effectiveness of investors' technology and business model, and to start the next round of investments in Georgia, so that BIOCURE will soon announce the birth of the first "Unicorn" (billion company) in Georgia.
Translated from Entrepreneur