Blue Marble Biomaterials (Missoula, Montana) has finalized terms for a $15 million funding agreement through the EB-5 visa program and has partnered with the Northern Rockies Regional Center LLC (NRRC), a financial firm dedicated to matching companies with foreign investors.
The funding comes just as Blue Marble, a sustainable chemical manufacturer that produces natural chemicals from waste biomass, is poised to expand from its current facility where it processes three tons of biomass per day to a substantially larger operation capable of processing 55 tons per day.
“NRRC is excited and optimistic about Blue Marble’s potential, and we are proceeding with the necessary steps to effectively introduce the company to the foreign investment community,” said Arnie Sherman, NRRC’s co-managing director.
As a designated EB-5 regional center, NRRC focuses specifically on funding clean technology, alternative energy and real estate ventures. The firm is a symbiotic match with Blue Marble, which is classified as a clean technology company because its products offer an alternative to petroleum-based chemicals.
The federal EB-5 program provides a fast-track US residency pathway for qualified foreign investors through regional centers based on approved projects. EB-5 investments must create 10 permanent, full-time jobs for each $500,000, or in some cases, $1 million invested. As Blue Marble grows, it expects to create, directly and indirectly, 413 new jobs in the community.
