Biofuel process patents

2009-01-01

BIOFUELPROCESSPATENTS

JEREMYLAWSON*
LEGERROBICRICHARD,
LLP
L
AWYERS,PATENTANDTRADE-MARKAGENTS

Inthemoderneconomy,themanufacturingofaproductmayoccurinmanycountries.
Financial,regulatoryandgeopoliticalpressuresmaydictatethatsomeproductsare
producedinagivencountryprincipallyorexclusivelyforexport.Assuch,many
differentinternationalendeavoursandcooperationinitiativesaredevelopinginthe
biofuelsindustryastheglobaldemandforrenewablefuelscontinuestogrow.
Internationaltalksandcollaborationsregardingethanolhavebeenobservedbetween
organizationsinJapan,BrazilandSouthAmerica.TheMexicanfirmPetroSun
reportedlyhasplanstoerectalgae-to-biodieselsystemsandoilextractionplantsin
theUnitedStates,MexicoandAustralia.Biodieselplantsarealsobeingconstructed
andoperatedfromLima,Peru,toHamilton,Canada,aswellasfromthesoybean-belt
oftheUnitedStatestoNoviSad,Serbia.
Whilethebasiccompoundsandcompositionsofbiodieselandethanolbiofuelsare
notnew,onemainthrustofbiofuelsresearchisgearedtoimprovingproduction
processestoboostefficiencyanddrivedowncost.Therefore,processinventions
accountforasignificantsliceofthepatentinginthisfield.Iftheexclusiverightsofa
processpatentarelimitedtothecountryinwhichitisgranted,doesthepatentowner
haveanyrecourseiftheprocessisusedabroad?
Theansweristwofold.Ononehand,thepatentownercannotpreventitsprocess
frombeingexploitedinanycountrywhereitdoesnotholdapatent.Ontheother
hand,thepatentownercanstopimportationintothecountrywhereitholdsaprocess
patent,iftheproductisproducedbythepatentedprocessabroad.

Forinstance,ifaprocessforproducingethanolfromcellulosefeedstocksispatented
intheUnitedStatesandtheprocessisbeingutilizedinSouthAmerica,theethanol
producedbythisprocesscanbeexportedtoanycountryexcepttheUnitedStates.
Thepatentpotentialofanewtechnologyisthusevaluatedonacountry-by-country
basiswithafocusontheimport-exportpossibilitiesoftheconsumableproduct.

©CIPS,2009*OfLEGERROBICRICHARD,LLP,amultidisciplinaryfirmoflawyers,andpatentandtrade-marks
agents.PublishedintheMarch2009issueofBioenergyCanadaMagazine;alsoavailableat
http://www.biofuelsmagazine.ca/article.jsp?article_id=314&article_title=Biofuel+Process+Patents.
Publication62.39.

2
Thespecificapplicationofinfringementbyimportationmayvarydependingon
jurisdiction.Itsapplicabilityalsodependsontheimporteditemandtheend-productof
thepatentedprocess.Forinstance,accordingtotheSaccharindoctrine,whichisin
forceinsomecountriessuchasCanadaandtheUnitedKingdom;whentheimported
productisnotpreciselythesameastheoneresultingfromthepatentedprocess,
howeverisanintermediateusedintheproductionofthefinalproduct,theimportation
willneverthelessbeaninfringementifthepatentedprocessisimportantandnot
merelyincidentaltotheimportedproduct.Forbiofuels,thismaybepertinentifthe
importedproductisapretreatedorgeneticallymodifiedfeedstock.

Ingeneral,Canadiancaselawdefinesinfringementas“anyactthatinterfereswiththe
fullenjoymentofthemonopolygrantedtothepatentee,”oranyactivitythatdeprives
theinventoroffullenjoymentofthemonopolyconferredbylaw.Processpatents
shouldnotbeundervaluedbyresearchanddevelopment-drivenentities,norshould
theybeunderestimatedbythoseinvolvedinthemanufactureorimport-exportof
biofuels.

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