On October 11, 2016, Microvi Biotechnologies Inc. (Microvi)  announced that it had been awarded a grant by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for work on new biocatalytic technology that converts the methane and carbon dioxide (CO₂) found in biogas into valuable liquid chemicals . This technology utilizes the biogas created at landfills and wastewater treatment plants that is usually burned off into the atmosphere due to the current burdensome conversion process.  Microvi’s technology is expected to be much more efficient than conventional gas-to-liquid conversion processes, and will produce in-demand chemicals such as biobutanol.