ENGLEWOOD, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May. 15, 2012-- Gevo, Inc. (NASDAQ: GEVO), a leading renewable chemicals and next-generation biofuels company, commented on the lawsuit filed today by Butamax™ Advanced Biofuels, LLC (Butamax) alleging infringement of U.S. Patent No. 8,178,328 (‘328 Patent).

“The claims in the ‘328 Patent are virtually identical to the claims in Butamax’s earlier-issued 7,851,188 Patent (‘188 Patent) which were recently rejected and declared unpatentable by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office during reexamination,” said Brett Lund, Gevo’s Executive Vice President and General Counsel. “The ‘328 Patent issued from a child application of the ‘188 Patent and purports to cover engineered isobutanol-producing microorganisms.”

“Like Butamax’s ‘188 Patent, the technology described in the ‘328 Patent was invented by others and repeatedly described in journal publications dating back to the 1960s,” continued Lund. “We will request reexamination of the ‘328 Patent using similar arguments and are extremely confident that the outcome will be the same.”

About Gevo

Gevo is converting existing ethanol plants into biorefineries to make renewable building block products for the chemical and fuel industries. The Company plans to convert renewable raw materials into isobutanol and renewable hydrocarbons that can be directly integrated on a “drop in” basis into existing chemical and fuel products to deliver environmental and economic benefits. Gevo is committed to a sustainable biobased economy that meets society’s needs for plentiful food and clean air and water. For more information, visit www.gevo.com

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include statements that are not purely statements of historical fact, and can sometimes be identified by our use of terms such as “intend,” “expect,” “plan,” “estimate,” “future,” “strive” and similar words. These forward-looking statements are made on the basis of the current beliefs, expectations and assumptions of the management of Gevo and are subject to significant risks and uncertainty. Investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements. All such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and the company undertakes no obligation to update or revise these statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Although the company believes that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, these statements involve many risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from what may be expressed or implied in these forward-looking statements. For a further discussion of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those expressed in these forward-looking statements, as well as risks relating to the business of Gevo in general, see the risk disclosures in the Annual Report on Form 10-K of Gevo for the year ended December 31, 2011, as amended, and in subsequent reports on Forms 10-Q and 8-K and other filings made with the SEC by Gevo.

Source: Gevo, Inc.

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Beth E. Starkin, 212-931-6108
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Sarah McCabe, 267-909-9237
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