1. FUEL THE FUTURE A Digital Safari Greenbizz Company
Business Plan Competition
EMERALD GROW
Abegail Chelsea Angelique Devron
Cariaso Latteri Dawkins Grays

2. Over time the world has used up a significant portion of its oil supply with one third of it already depleted.
America alone uses 20 million barrels of oil per day compared to other countries which use 1.5 million
barrels of oil a day on average, exploiting third world countries such as Iraq in order to obtain these
resources. Our dependency in foreign oils has become detrimental to our country, using a significant
amount of tax money to fund the war in the Middle East. The use of fossil fuels has caused expedient
deterioration of earth, causing drastic temperature changes due to its unhealthy emissions and damaging
our ecosystems when an oil spill occurs. Another issue we face is the development of dead zones, areas
in the ocean that have low oxygen levels due to algae blooms that cause damage to marine life along the
coast.
Emerald Grow is a company located in Louisiana that dedicates its efforts to decrease our dependency
on oil and increase the earth’s sustainability. Our team consists of highly educated individuals who are
determined to provide our nation with the cleaner fuel it deserves.
The biodiesel Emerald Grow produces is made from selectively bred algae grown in fertilizer runoffs. These
runoffs lead to the ocean and cause large algae blooms. During its decomposition stage, these algae
blooms take up a large percentage of the ocean’s oxygen that marine life need in order to survive. Because
of the oxygen displacement, over 240,000 square feet along the coast have become dead zones which have
harmed markets dependent on seafood. The selectively bred algae we grow makes an excellent biodiesel
because it grows rapidly and abundantly, consumes chemicals that are harmful to the environment as it
grows, yields more oil than its other biodiesel competitors, and takes up a small amount of space to grow.
Essentially, Emerald Fuel will be the most efficient biofuel financially and environmentally.
Supporting trends show that there is a market for Emerald Grow. In his 2008 campaign, Obama proposed
to use 63 billion gallons of biofuels by the year 2013. Major fuel companies such as Exxon Mobile has
invested $600 million in research and production of algae fuel.
There are thousands of construction sites who’s machinery runs on diesel that are our potential customers.
Our biodiesel would be beneficial to construction companies because during the planning phases of their
projects, they would have a more accurate estimation of what percentage of their expenses will be from
fuel. This is because biodiesel is a renewable energy source and its price doesn’t fluctuate like regular diesel
does. Not only does our company provide better predictability, but it also offers construction companies
and distributers tax incentives because the biodiesel is sustainable.
Emerald Grow is requesting funds for the initial costs mainly consisting of research and development for
a total of $10 million. Profit for investors will be tremendous as shown by the financial projections. As our
nation makes the switch to biodiesel, our company will become one of the main producers and revenue
Executive Summary

3. Company Profile
How it Started
During a vacation to the East Coast, Abegail Cariaso noticed that the once astonishing Gulf of Mexico was now
an underwater jungle of green sludge. Disappointed by the lack of marine life, she researched the cause of their
departure and learned that the agricultural fertilizer run offs created algae blooms which caused these “dead
zones”. When she arrived back home, she discussed the devastating sight with her friend Chelsea Latteri. Chel-
sea suggested that there had to be a way in which those algae blooms could be controlled. Still, the question
remained: “What would we do with all that algae if it was contained?” Another friend, Angelique Dawkins, told
them that she had read online that algae could be turned into a biodiesel. Devron Grays, a former classmate of
Abegail, took a class on “sustainable living” and offered to help with the technical aspects of this product devel-
opment. Upon countless hours of research, networking, and pure determination, these ambitious individuals
developed a process for growing algae and turning it into biodiesel, giving birth to a new company, Emerald
Grow.

4. Company Profile
Meet the Executives
Ms. Cariaso has had an alpha dog mentality since grade
school. She always took initiative when given tasks and
made sure her group members worked diligently in order
to meet deadlines. In high school, Abegail attended two
prestigious academies – the Digital Safari Academy, and the
Health and Bioscience Academy where she studied in the
field of digital arts as well as biotechnology. Upon gradua-
tion, Abegail started an organization in Zimbabwe, provid-
ing sanitary restrooms as well as health education in order
to aide the victims of the cholera epidemic. She also studied
the issues of multiculturalism and produced a documentary
called “Parental Dilemma” which focused on a student’s pur-
suit to become an artist despite her parent’s wishes for her to
be in the medical field. Ms. Cariaso is highly involved in her
community, volunteering at soup kitchens, running fundrais- Abegail Cariaso
ers, and ministering to the youth at her church. These experi- Chief Executive Officer
ences helped develop Abegail’s strong leadership skills, mak-
ing her the most qualified candidate to hold this position.
Devron Grays is a prodigal music producer, who grew up
landscaping. Working with power tools and learning what
really goes into establishing substantial amounts of beautiful
scenery has helped him develop a logical mindset. As a High
School Student, he attended the Digital Safari Academy in
order to study music production and multimedia. Because of
Grays’ prior experiences through landscaping and music pro-
duction, he qualified for the Chief Technical Officer position.
Grays has also achieved a student of the year award for his
mathematical genius in advanced calculus his freshman year
in high school. Because of his great amount of prior experi-
ences, Grays is a wonderful asset to our company.
Devron Grays
Chief Technical Officer

5. Ms. Latteri is a buoyant and creative business woman who
works diligently in order to maximize production. In high
school, she attended the Digital Safari Academy to study
multimedia and excelled in personal finance. Upon gradu-
ation, Chelsea started an organization called Needles on
Wheels in order to help AIDS victims in Uganda. Her organi-
zation received first place during the Legacy of Imperialism
fair. She also studied the issues of multiculturalism and cre-
ated a documentary focusing on stereotypes. During the
summer, she worked at a theater in Martinez California as
a stage assistant. On her free time, Chelsea likes to be out-
doors and playing sports. The experiences she’s gained have
Chelsea Latteri helped her become the right person to take on the financial
Chief Financial Officer responsibilities of this company.
Angelique Dawkins is always the collected and practical
person in the group. Whenever a dispute breaks out within
a group, she sits the members down in order to work out
the situation. In her last year of high school, Angelique
Dawkins transferred to the Digital Safari Academy to study
multimedia where she created several design templates as
well as advertisement posters. A sweet personality like Ms.
Dawkins’ is essential to any business.
Angelique Dawkins
Marketing Director

6. Product Data
Harvesting Site Layout Thermoregulator
Piping system
Overflow
area
Algae
river
Fertilizer
Filtration
Drainage pump site
The Machinery
The innovative machinery Emerald Grow uses is the Features
key to productivity. The Emerald Fuel Harvesting site • Grows fast
is a unit similar to a storage unit. A pipeline allows • Takes little space to grow
the river water to enter the unit by the pressure
exerted from the ruler current. The unit is then • Takes little maintenance
filled with fertilizer enriched water, where the algae
begins to grow. A thermoregulator installed into the
unit, monitors the temperature so that the algae Environmental Benefits
maintains the ideal environment in which to grow. • Reduces Green House Gasses by 15%
Once the unit reaches maximum capacity the algae • Safe to handle, store and transport
is pumped into one of our trucks where it is sent to • Offsets Carbon Dioxide during life cycle
our refinery for processing.
• Reduces fertilizer run off
The Fuel
Emerald fuel is the most sustainable biodiesel. It Consumer Benefits
offers more miles per gallon than regular diesel and • Offered at fixed price
is a lot healthier for your engine. Using biodiesel also • Better for engines
reduces green house gas emissions Carbon Dioxide • More miles-per-gallon
released from combustion is offset by the carbon • Tax subsidies from government
dioxide used when growing the algae, reducing
green house gas emissions by 15%. Emerald
fuel is nontoxic so it causes far less damage than
petroleum diesel if spilled or otherwise released
into the environment. It is safe to handle, store, and
transport.

7. Marketing Analysis
Opportunity
The human race needs to shift from its dependency on Several investors include Bill Gates, along with his
the scarce supply of fossil fuels and at the same time, partners, who have funded Sapphire Energy Inc
keep an eye on the hazardous wastes and pollutions with $100 million, U.K. government-funded Carbon
they are emitting into the environment . Research- Trust which has donated $11.7 million to nine uni-
ers have conducted countless jaw dropping statistics, versities, and Exxon Mobil which donated the larg-
investors have put in an enormous amount of money est amount of $600 million in order to make this
to fund research on alternative resources, even world fuel the new petroleum commercial product. Even
leaders are making propositions in order to save the the Navy has signed a contract with Solazyme to
planet we call home. That’s why Emerald Grow is also produce 150,000 gallons of fuel to run their ships.
joining this fight for our future by providing algae bi-
odiesel while cleaning our waterways. Dead zones are areas of low-oxygen water in the
aquatic environment, often caused by decomposi-
Scientists have found a way to use algae, a single celled tion of vast algal blooms. According to a new study
bacteria, to create a cleaner, more efficient biofuel. in science, there are now 405 identified dead zones
Algae consumes carbon dioxide in order to grow and worldwide, up from 49 in the 1960s. This is no small
doubles its size every six hours. The algae is dried to ex- economic matter. In 1976, hypoxia (low-oxygen) oc-
tract the oil, and is made into diesel fuel that according curred off the coasts of New York and New Jersey,
to CEO Jonathan Wolfson of Solazyme Inc is “chemically covering a mere 385 square miles. This cost commer-
indistinguishable from its petroleum-based equivalent cial and recreational fisheries more than $500 million.
and has already powered a Jeep Liberty and a Merce- About 83,000 tons of fish and other ocean life are lost
dez Benz sedan.” Algae can yield thirty times more oil to the Chesapeake Bay dead zone each year. This is
than crops such as soy, doesn’t compete for land with a enough to feed half the commercial crab catch for a
crop that feeds people and animals (corn), and doesn’t year. Robert Diaz of The College of William & Mary says
take much processing before it can power a diesel run- “More than 235,000 tons of food is lost to hypoxia in
ning vehicle. the Gulf of Mexico.” “That’s enough to feed 75 percent
of the average brown shrimp harvest from the Louisi-
Obama proposed in his campaign while running for of- ana gulf. If there was no hypoxia and there was that
fice that he demands that the US consumes 63 billion much more food, don’t you think the shrimp and crabs
gallons of alternative fuels by 2030 in order to recog- would be happier? They would certainly be fatter.”
nize that our country does not need to be dependent
on foreign fuels. Investors have seen the potential in The biofuel we are producing solves both the dead
this up and coming biofuel and have invested large zone and oil shortage issues within the United
amounts of money to fund research as well. States. Our patented technology allows us to grow
selectively bred algae using a filtering process that
will allow the chemicals in the fertilizer runoffs to
enter the harvesting site in which the algae grows.

8. gender of contractors
Customer Profile
The potential customers of Emerald Grow are construction
companies and biodiesel distributers located in Louisiana. There
are 25,877 building and construction companies and 21biodiesel
46%
distributers that we can potentially sell our fuel to. The prices 54%
of biodiesel do not fluctuate and remain consistent, allowing
construction companies to have better predictions of their financial
projections. Also, our sustainable product will give our customers
tax deductibles.
male
Demographics female
The specific individuals we are aiming to sell to are construction
managers. Construction managers plan, direct, coordinate, and
budget a wide variety of construction projects, including the
level of education
building of all types of residential, commercial, and industrial
structures, roads, bridges, waste water treatment plants, and
schools and hospitals. 47% of construction managers have either an 17%
associates or bachelors degree in construction science, construction
management, building science, or civil engineering. The other 53%
of construction managers have worked their way up from being 50%
carpenters, masons, plumbers, or electricians, for example—or 33%
after having worked as construction supervisors or as owners of
independent specialty contracting firms. However, as construction
processes become increasingly complex, employers are placing
more importance on specialized education after high school. The high school diploma
majority of construction managers are men and the average salary college degree
for these workers are $60,650, making them part of the middle class. some college
Geographics Income
The ideal environment for Emerald Grow would be areas with sunny
climates and land used for agricultural purposes. Nitrogen and
phosphorus found in fertilizer that runs off into rivers combined 14%
with sunshine create the perfect conditions for algae to thrive. 31%
States that are primarily agricultural include Tennessee, Kentucky,
Kansas, Oaklahoma, and Louisiana; with Louisiana holding the most
potential because the Mississippi River channels its ends in Louisiana.
It is also a state where there are many urban and suburban areas 55%
where our target customers dwell. Having Emerald Grow within this
area of the states would help the growing population by supplying
alternative resources, reducing air pollution, and cleaning up water $20,000-$50,000
ways. $51,000-$81,000
$80,000+

9. Competitive Analysis
Gallons of pollution Gallons of oil per acre Water used to grow (Gallons)
0 37,500 75,000 112,500 150,000 0 1,250,000 2,500,000 3,750,000 5,000,000 0 25,000 50,000 75,000 100,000
POET Emerald Grow Commercio
Pollution Efficiency
Comercio is a company in Brazil that grows sugarcane in Sugarcane oil has already replaced 50% of Brazil’s
order to produce ethanol. The reason why there is low gasoline, but the rise in the demand of this fuel
energy consumption in the production of sugarcane also increases the demand of land used to grow
fuel is the result of exploitation of farmers who work sugarcane, threatening plant diversity and upsetting
long, physically demanding hours, planting and the natural balance along the Amazon. Producing
harvesting sugarcane by hand. Although Comercio is an average amount of fuel requires a vast amount of
creating a green product, their methods aren’t exactly land because one acre of sugarcane yields only 500
environmentally friendly because its crops are being gallons of oil. It takes 16 -18 months until sugarcane
harvested by tractors running on diesel fuel which can be harvested, and can grow for about 6-7 years
emit carbon dioxide and a lot of other green house before a new batch must be grown. At this rate,
gases. In addition, importing sugarcane fuel from Comercio can only produce 3,500 gallons of oil
South America to the United States requires several within the 6-7 year lifespan of a sugarcane crop per
forms of transportation including trucks, boats and acre.
planes; all producing an excess amount of pollution.
Like Comercio, POET faces the threat of upsetting
POET, a company in the United States also uses nature’s balance by cutting down trees to make
manual labor in the production of their corn oil, but room for corn. Also, using corn as fuel leaves less
because of worker regulations, farmers are treated food for our domestic livestock and increases the
more fairly. Tractors and other vehicles that are used price of food for ourselves because of scarcity. One
in POET’s harvesting process use ethanol themselves, acre of POET’s corn can yield only 328 gallons of oil.
cutting green house gas emissions drastically. Since It also takes about 16-18 months to harvest corn
POET plants are already located within the United and can grow about 8 – 10 years before a new batch
States, exporting the corn fuels won’t exert as much must be grown. At this rate, POET can produce
pollution as Comercio. 3,280 gallons of oil within the lifespan of a corn crop
per acre.
Our company, Emerald Grow, produces a biofuel
from a bacteria known as algae. Algae practically Unlike corn or sugarcane, Emerald Grow uses
grows on its own, so manual labor is at a minimum, algae as it’s source for oil, a bacteria that isn’t used
requiring only routine check-ups and feeding as primarily as a food source. Algae can grow practically
opposed to the long process of farm work. Our algae anywhere and in volumes rather than acres. It also
is grown in tubes, so tractors aren’t needed to harvest multiplies in size expediently, almost twice it’s size
at all, cutting those possible green house emissions every six hours. Algae can be harvested within
completely. Like POET, we are located in the US so just weeks depending on the size of the vessel it
exporting our fuel around the nation creates less is grown in. In a closed, sterile environment, our
pollution than Comercio would. Our company’s genetically engineered algae can yield 80% oil. With
trucks used to distribute also run on the algae fuel it such a high percentage, we can produce 5,000,000
produces. gallons per year.

10. Marketing Plan
Product
Emerald Fuel is made completely from Algae, a clean and natural energy source for our environment that could
potentially help deal with the problems of oil scarcity. Unlike other bio-fuel companies thats use up land and
release harmful chemicals into our water, Emerald Grow uses these harmful toxins to fertilize the Algae. This
cleans up the environment from hazardous environmental situations like the dead zones along the coast.
Price
Diesel fuel is a commodity that sells at a fluctuating price that depends on quantities of supply of the fuel and
other factors such as time of year, technical innovations and the overall economy. The overall price for biodiesel
is also dependent on the vegetable oil market since this is the primary source for mass produced biodiesel.
Currently the market price for biodiesel fuel is fluctuating around $82 per barrel. We expect to be able to make a
sizable profit if prices for diesel stay near this level and since we control all factors of productions, we are able to
sell our fuel for $80 per barrel.
Placement
Emerald Grow will be storing its fuels in large storage tanks. In our business to business transactions, biodiesel
distributers will come to our tanks to fill up their trucks and then divide it amongst their diesel running vehicles.
Promotion
Our customers will be mainly drivers with diesel-powered vehicles. To get the message across to our customers
that Emerald Fuel is the cleaner option of biofuels, our product will be promoted through large weekly
magazines such as “Time Magazine” and “National Geographic” to catch the eye of those interested politically,
economically, and environmentally. We will also promote our fuel on billboards and mobile billboards, providing
truck-side advertising for a more broad range of promotion. The trucks that transport our fuel will display our
advertisements.

11. Financial Projections
Sales and Revenue Growth
The oil industry is receiving significant attention because of different scenarios such as the war in the Middle
East and the recent BP oil spill. One third of the world’s fossil fuels has already been consumed with US using 20
million barrels a day. Research shows that biodiesel will be the only option feasible, and if made mainstream,
consumers would purchase our biodiesel because of its convenience and sustainability. Many companies such as
construction sites and delivery services depend on fuel to operate. It is important for them to be able to predict
the costs of fuel they will use annually as part as their operation budget, and with constantly fluctuating fossil
fuel diesel, it will be difficult for them to determine those costs. Because we control our factors of production,
we can negotiate a contract with these companies and sell our biodiesel at a constant price. This is essential to
any fuel dependent company because while diesel prices change over night, our biodiesel contract lets them
pay the same price. Emerald Grow uses selective breeding in order to harvest algae that consumes most of
the runoffs and yields 80% of fatty oil that can be processed into biodiesel. Because biodiesel is an inelastic
commodity, Emerald Grow depends on the quantity of fuel it produces. With our patented technology, we are
able to produce 5 million gallons of oil per site per year. This equates to 71,600 barrels of oil per site per year. At
a fixed price of $80 per barrel, our total revenue would equal $52 million per site per year. Within the first year,
we will operate one site in order to test run our technology and fine-tune it so that we can yields as much oil
as possible. Once this infrastructure is established, we will be adding to the number of sites in order to provide
exponential growth. We are expecting to expand by 75% each year. By year two, we will have 3 sites and produce
150,000 barrels of oil. This production level will continue to escalate and by year 5, we will have 16 sites and will
produce 825,000 barrels.
Product Projections (barrels)
900000
675000
450000
225000
0
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

12. Earnings Projection - First Year
Q1 2010 Q2 2010 Q3 2010 Q4 2010
Operations (fixed $590,000 $930,000 $410,000 $570,000
costs)
Cost of Goods $300,000 $600,000 $1,200,000 $2,400,000
(variable costs)
Wholesale Price $80 $80 $80 $80
Production
5,000.00 10,000.00 20,000.00 40,000.00
Units (barrels)
Revenue (price
$400,000 $800,000 $1,600,000 $3,200,000
x units)
Profit Margin
$490,000 $730,000 $10,000 $230,000
(revenue - costs)
Total Earnings $490,000 $1,220,000 $1,230,000 $1,000,000
Earnings Projection - Five Year
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
Revenue (price x
$6,000,000 $12,000,000 $24,000,000 $42,000,000 $66,000,000
units)
Operations (fixed $18,600,000 $12,200,000 $8,520,000 $7,200,000 $9,600,000
costs)
Cost of Goods
$600,000 $1,200,000 $2,400,000 $4,200,000 $6,600,000
(variable costs)
Wholesale Price $80 $80 $80 $80 $80
Production Units
75,000 150,000 300,000 525,000 825,000
(barrels)
Profit Margin
(revenue - costs)
$13,200,000 $1,400,000 $13,080,000 $30,600,000 $49,800,000
Total Earnings $13,200,000 $14,600,000 $1,520,000 $29,080,000 $78,880,000
1 2 4 7 11

13. Operation Costs
For the purpose of this project, it is assumed that the cost of operation for our company
compromises 85% of our revenue and is composed of the following individual items:
• Research and development
• Refinery
• Storage tank lease
• Land lease in Louisiana
• Salaries
Cost of Goods
For the purpose of this project, it is assumed that the cost of goods for our company’s product
compromises 10% of our revenue and is composed of the following individual items:
• Transportation
• Harvesting materials
• Labor and management
Advertising & Marketing Expenses
For the purpose of this project, it is assumed that the cost for advertising and marketing
expenses compromise 30% of our revenue. We will place our ads on our transportation
vehicles. It will cost $700 per truck advertisement and the total cost varies depending on how
many transportation vehicles our company will use. In addition to our mobile advertisements,
we will place ads on billboards. It will cost $300,000 to place 10 billboards within large cities
where our target customers reside per year. Magazine ad placement in National Geographic
costs $450,000 per page per year. This will equate to $1 million dollars for the first year. As
the years go by, revenue spent on advertising will decrease as public recognition increases.

14. Life Cycle Analysis
Acquiring Manufacturing
Transporting
Using & Disposing
+
Acquiring Transporting
The glass tubes used to harvest Emerald Grow When any thing is transported, whether by truck,
algae are made overseas and shipped to the train, plane or ship, an energy source is needed.
US. The labor required to work the tubes and The green house gases that are emitted by the
machinery isn’t as demanding as other biodiesel burning of the fuels are bad for the environment
companies, and our company abides by strict and it does not make a company look good on the
working condition laws. Growing the algae in a environmentally friendly side. In order to ensure
contained environment is a sustainable practice maximum sustainability, our shipping trucks will
because it saves the oceans from hypoxia and run on the fuel we produce.
turns that potential danger into an energy source.
Manufacturing Using & Disposing
As do all refineries, the Emerald Grow refinery Emerald Fuel is an all natural energy source
has a range of environmental issues including that does not harm the environment with toxic
water and air pollution. However, there are some pollution like regular petroleum does, so there is
key factors that allow Emerald Grow to be more also no harm done to human health when they
sustainable. Along with nitrogen and phosphorus, are intact with our diesel. Our bio-diesel when
algae needs carbon dioxide in order to grow. As in use burns more cleaner and is more efficient
it undergoes fermentation, the carbon dioxide in mileage compared to petroleum. The fuel is
producing during this process can be recycled disposed of when in use, and when algae fuel
instead of being emitted into the atmosphere. Our burns, it emits less harmful emissions compared
refinery also uses a fraction of its diesel to power it, to regular diesel. In the process of producing
reducing heat and electrical energy consumption our fuel, the algae consumes carbon dioxide, so
by 19-31%. when vehicles burn our fuel, the carbon dioxide is
recycled. The carbon dioxide emitted equals the
carbon dioxide used to produce.

15. Promotion

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