Tjerk de Ruiter, the former CEO of Genencor, has been named President and CEO of LS9, a renewable chemicals and fuel startup funded by Flagship Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Chevron Technology Ventures, and BlackRock. De Ruiter, the current chairman, replaces Ed Dineen, CEO since December 2010, who will remain a member of LS9's Board. We'll be reporting on the status of LS9 in the coming days.
Edeniq, a biomaterials and sustainable fuels startup working with cellulosic ethanol, named Dr. Dan Michalopoulos VP of Technology. Edeniq is funded by Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Flint Hills Resources Renewables, The Westly Group and Cyrus Capital.
Novozymes announced that Peder Holk Nielsen will soon succeed Steen Riisgaard in the role of CEO. Novozymes holds a 47 percent market share of the world market for industrial enzymes, according to the firm.
Vivint Solar appointed its first CTO, Dan Rapp. Vivint is a home automation firm, recently acquired by Blackstone for $2 billion. The firm is moving into residential solar system sales and leasing.
Better Place is switching out its new CEO. A few months after replacing founder and CEO Shai Agassi, Evan Thornley is stepping down as boss of the ambitious vehicle battery-swap startup and was wished the best of luck in his future endeavors by the board. Idan Ofer, Chairman of the Board, will serve as Executive Chairman, and Alan Gelman, current CFO, will manage operations.