Verenium Reports Financial Results for the First Quarter 2009

- Company enters into Phase II of BP partnership and appoints new CFO with
extensive energy financing background -

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., May 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Verenium Corporation
(Nasdaq: VRNM), a pioneer in the development of next-generation cellulosic
ethanol and high-performance specialty enzymes, today reported corporate
accomplishments and financial results for the first quarter of 2009.

"We had a strong start to 2009, beginning with the announcement of our 50/50
joint venture with BP for developing commercial cellulosic ethanol facilities.
This critical partnership firmly positions us, along with BP, to be a first
mover in the field of next-generation ethanol," stated Carlos A. Riva,
President and Chief Executive Officer of Verenium. "As we look toward
commercial operations, we continue to be very encouraged by the political
climate and support for alternative energy and, specifically, biofuels."

Company Highlights and Accomplishments
Since the beginning of 2009, Verenium has made significant progress and
achieved several important milestones, including:

Corporate

-- Announced the consolidation of the Company's R&D organization
to include the Jennings, LA, pilot and demonstration-scale biofuels
facilities under Greg Powers, Executive Vice President of Research and
Development;
-- Appointed James E. Levine, an experienced energy banking and finance
executive from Goldman Sachs, as Executive Vice President and Chief
Financial Officer to support the Company in rebuilding its capital
structure and securing necessary financing for commercial projects;
and

-- Implemented aggressive expense management initiatives to decrease
operating expenses as compared to prior quarters.

Biofuels Business

-- Announced the second phase of a significant corporate partnership with
BP through a 50/50 joint venture to develop, own and operate
cellulosic
ethanol facilities using non-food feedstocks with a total commitment
of
$45 million in funding and assets from the two partners;
-- Identified Highlands County, Florida as the location for a first
commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol facility. This facility will be
developed as part of the Company's joint venture with BP and is
expected to provide the region with approximately 140 full-time jobs
once commercial operations begin. This project was awarded a $7.0
million grant as part of Florida's "Farm to Fuel"
initiative;
-- Submitted, through the joint venture formed between Verenium and BP, a
loan guarantee application to the Department of Energy (DOE) under
their
current solicitation; and

-- Began the optimization phase of the Company's 1.4
million-gallon-per-year demonstration-scale plant in Jennings, LA.

Specialty Enzymes Business

-- Achieved first quarter product gross margin improvement of nearly $1.5
million on relatively flat product revenue as compared to prior year;
-- Announced the launch of Veretase(TM) alpha-amylase, a high performance
enzyme that improves the economics and efficiency of the sweetener and
beverage alcohol production markets; and

-- Signed a collaboration agreement with Alfa Laval for the Purifine(R)
PLC
Enzyme to expand Purifine's global market penetration in the edible
oil industry by jointly marketing enzymatic degumming of vegetable
oils
using Verenium's Purifine PLC enzyme and Alfa Laval's
engineering services and equipment.

Financial Results
Total revenues for the quarter ended March 31, 2009 were $14.4 million
compared to $15.2 million for same period in the prior year, with product
revenues representing more than 70 percent of total revenues in both periods.

Product revenues for the quarter ended March 31, 2009 were $10.6 million
compared to $11.2 million for same period in the prior year, representing a
decrease of 6 percent. Gross shipments of Phyzyme, the Company's phytase for
the animal feed industry sold through Danisco Animal Nutrition, remained at
levels comparable to 2008. However, reported Phyzyme revenue in the first
quarter of 2009 was lower than reported revenue reported for the same period
in 2008 due to a larger percentage of Phyzyme being manufactured by Danisco,
for which the Company only recognizes the net profit share component in
revenue pursuant to current accounting rules. The decrease in product revenue
also reflects the Company's discontinuation of its Bayovac-SRS and Quantum
product lines during early 2008. The decrease in product revenue from these
sources was offset in part by an increase in revenue from Fuelzyme, the
Company's alpha amylase for corn ethanol.

Product gross margin improved in the first quarter of 2009, versus the same
period in the prior year, reflecting improved profit share from Danisco,
improved capacity utilization and improved manufacturing yields.

Excluding cost of product revenues, total operating expenses increased from
$24.5 million for the three months ended March 31 2008, to $27.0 million for
the three months ended March 31, 2009. The year-over-year increase in total
operating expenses (excluding cost of product revenues) relates primarily to
the acceleration of biofuels development and commercialization efforts in
2009. Total operating expenses include gross expenses incurred to support
ongoing development related to the Company's consolidated joint ventures with
BP, Galaxy and Highlands. BP's share of the Company's total first quarter of
2009 operating expenses of $27.0 was $7.9 million which is included below
operating expenses as "Loss attributed to noncontrolling interest in
consolidated entities."

Non-cash, share-based compensation expense included in operating expenses for
the quarter ended March 31, 2009 was $2.5 million compared to $3.5 million for
the same period in the prior year.

Net interest expense for the three months ended March 31, 2009 was $3.2
million, net of $1.0 million in capitalized interest related to the Company's
demonstration facility, compared to $2.1 million for the three months ended
March 31, 2008, net of $0.9 million in capitalized interest in that same
period. These expenses related almost exclusively to the cash and non-cash
interest expense from the Company's convertible debt instruments. Of total
net interest expense for the first quarter of 2009, $1.4 million represents
non-cash interest expense related to the Company's 8 percent convertible
notes, compared to $0.5 million in non-cash interest for the same period in
2008.

Net loss for the quarter ended March 31, 2009 was $0.3 million. In comparison,
net loss for the same period in the prior year was $23.1 million. The
decrease in net loss for the current period is largely attributable to the
non-cash gain from accounting for fair value adjustments related to the
Company's 8 percent convertible notes. Adjusted for the non-cash gain from
accounting for fair value adjustments and in 2008, a loss on debt exchange and
conversions related to the 8 percent convertible notes, the Company's non-GAAP
pro-forma net loss for the quarter ended March 31, 2009 was $13.6 million, as
compared to $18.9 million for the same period in the prior year. The Company
believes that excluding the non-cash impact of these items provides a more
consistent measure of operating results.

The Company has reported its operating results based on management's current
interpretations related to the required adoption of Financial Accounting
Standards Board's Accounting Principles Board Opinion No. 14-1 ("APB 14-1"),
"Accounting for Convertible Debt Instruments that May be Settled in Cash upon
Conversion (Including Partial Cash Settlement)," and Emerging Issues Task
Force Statement No. 07-05 ("EITF 07-05"), "Determining Whether an Instrument
(or Embedded Feature) is Indexed to an Entity's Own Stock," which have revised
the required accounting treatment of the 8 percent convertible notes. The
Company has engaged a leading international accounting firm to assist in the
assessment of the technical accounting and related valuations resulting from
this required change in accounting treatment. This assessment is still subject
to finalization by the Company and review by its independent registered public
accounting firm. As a result, the actual non-cash impact resulting from the
adoption of APB 14-1 and EITF 07-05 may result in revisions to certain
non-cash elements of the first quarter 2009 operating results as reported in
this press release. The Company expects to file its Form 10-Q for the
quarterly period ended March 31, 2009, which will reflect the final impact of
the adoption of APB 14-1 and EITF 07-05, on or before May 14, 2009.

As of March 31, 2009, the Company had unrestricted cash, cash equivalents, and
short-term investments totaling $15.9 million.

"Despite the continued challenging economic environment, we remain committed
to effectively managing our business, including the stringent management of
corporate resources, in order to deliver on our vision of building a
market-leading, next-generation biofuels business. We are focused and
committed to rebuilding a healthy capital structure for Verenium in order to
set the foundation for future growth and success," said James E. Levine,
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

About Verenium
Verenium Corporation is a leader in the development and commercialization of
cellulosic ethanol, an environmentally-friendly and renewable transportation
fuel, as well as high-performance specialty enzymes for applications within
the biofuels, industrial, and animal health markets. The Company possesses
integrated, end-to-end capabilities and cutting-edge technology in
pre-treatment, novel enzyme development, fermentation and project development
for next-generation biofuels. Through a joint venture with BP, the Company is
moving rapidly to commercialize its proprietary technology for the production
of ethanol from a wide array of non-food feedstocks, including dedicated
energy crops, agricultural waste, and wood products. In addition to the vast
potential for biofuels, a multitude of large-scale industrial opportunities
exist for the Company for products derived from the production of low-cost,
biomass-derived sugars.

Verenium's Specialty Enzyme business harnesses the power of enzymes to create
a broad range of specialty products to meet high-value commercial needs.
Verenium's world class R&D organization is renowned for its capabilities in
the rapid screening, identification, and expression of enzymes-proteins that
act as the catalysts of biochemical reactions. For more information on
Verenium, visit http://www.verenium.com.

Forward Looking Statements
Statements in this press release that are not strictly historical are
"forward-looking" and involve a high degree of risk and uncertainty. These
include statements related to the Company's operations, capabilities,
commercialization activities, target markets, cellulosic ethanol facilities,
and the impact of adopting EITF 07-05 on its financial statements, all of
which are prospective. Such statements are only predictions, and actual events
or results may differ materially from those projected in such forward-looking
statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to the differences include,
but are not limited to, risks associated with Verenium's new and uncertain
technologies, risks associated with the costs, labor requirements and labor
availability associated with Verenium's demonstration plant, risks associated
with Verenium's ability to obtain additional capital to support its planned
operations, risks associated with Verenium's dependence on patents and
proprietary rights, risks associated with Verenium's protection and
enforcement of its patents and proprietary rights, technological, regulatory,
competitive and other risks related to development, production, and
commercialization of cellulosic ethanol and other biofuels and the commercial
prospects of those industries, Verenium's dependence on existing
collaboration, manufacturing, and/or license agreements, and its ability to
achieve milestones under existing and future collaboration agreements, the
ability of Verenium and its partners to commercialize products (including by
obtaining any required regulatory approvals) using Verenium's technologies and
timing for launching any commercialized products, the ability of Verenium and
its collaborators to market and sell any products that it or they
commercialize, the development or availability of competitive products or
technologies, the future ability of Verenium to enter into and/or maintain
collaboration and joint venture agreements and licenses, changes in the U.S.
or global energy markets and laws and regulations applicable to them, changes
in the interpretation of EITF 07-05 that could impact accounting treatment for
the 8% convertible notes, and risks and other uncertainties more fully
described in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, including, but not limited to, the Company's annual report on Form
10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008. These forward-looking statements
speak only as of the date hereof. The Company expressly disclaims any intent
or obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

Contacts:
Kelly Lindenboom
Vice President, Corporate Communications
617-674-5335
kelly.lindenboom@verenium.com

Sarah Carmody
Sr. Corporate Communications Associate
617-674-5357
sarah.carmody@verenium.com

Verenium Corporation
Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations
(in thousands, except per share amounts)

Three Months Ended March 31,
2009 2008
(Adjusted)(1)

Revenues:
Product $10,569 $11,201
Collaborative 1,264 3,475
Grant 2,558 559
Total revenue 14,391 15,235

Operating expenses:
Cost of product revenue 5,755 7,877
Research and development 17,815 14,861
Selling, general and administrative 9,172 9,683
Total operating expenses 32,742 32,421
Loss from operations (18,351) (17,186)

Interest income, net 36 356
Interest expense (3,150) (2,076)
Loss on exchange of convertible notes -- (3,599)
Loss on debt extinguishment -- (48)
Gain (loss) on net change in value of derivative
assets and liabilities 13,309 (564)
Net loss $(8,156) $(23,117)
Loss attributed to non-controlling interest
in consolidated entities 7,870 --
Net loss attributed to Verenium $(286) $(23,117)

Basic net loss per share $-- $(0.38)

Shares used in computing basic net loss per share 70,295 61,206

Verenium Corporation
Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet Data
(in thousands)

March 31, December 31,
2009 2008
(Unaudited) (Adjusted)(1)

Cash, cash equivalents and short-term
investments $15,862 $7,458
Accounts receivable, net 7,172 8,051
Inventory, net 5,317 2,432
Other current assets 2,851 2,938
Restricted cash 10,400 10,040
Property and equipment, net 116,476 117,271
Derivative asset - convertible hedge
transaction, net 3 163
Other noncurrent assets 4,856 5,270
Total assets $162,937 $153,623

Current liabilities, excluding deferred
revenue 39,608 $41,247
Deferred revenue 3,176 3,397
Convertible senior notes, net of discounts 125,429 130,391
Other long term liabilities 6,025 6,280
Noncontrolling interest in consolidated
entities 30,630 12,000
Stockholders' deficit (41,931) (39,692)
Total liabilities, noncontrolling
interests and stockholders'
deficit $162,937 $153,623

(1) Prior year amounts adjusted due to the Company's adoption of FASB
Staff Position (FSP) Accounting Principles Board Opinions (APB) 14-1,
Accounting for Convertible Debt Instruments that May be Settled in
Cash upon Conversion (Including Partial Cash Settlement) (APB 14-1)
effective January 1, 2009. The adoption of APB 14-1 affects the
accounting for the Company's 8% Senior Convertible Notes issued in
February 2008 and Due April 1, 2012 ("2008 Notes"). Once adopted, APB
14-1 requires retrospective application to the terms of instruments as
they existed for all periods presented. For more information, refer
to the Company's Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended March 31,
2009, which the Company intends to file with the Securities and
Exchange Commission on or before May 14, 2009.

Verenium Corporation
Unaudited Supplemental and Non-GAAP Proforma Financial Information
(in thousands, except per share amounts)

Product Gross Margin
Three Months Ended March 31,
2009 2008

Product revenues $10,569 $11,201
Cost of product revenues 5,755 7,877
Product gross margin $4,814 $3,324

Non-GAAP Pro Forma Net Loss
Three Months Ended March 31,
2009 2008
(Unaudited) (Adjusted)(1)

Net loss attributed to Verenium $(286) $(23,117)

Adjustments:
Loss on exchange of convertible notes -- 3,599
Loss on debt extinguishment -- 48
(Gain) loss on net change in value of
derivative assets and liabilities (13,309) 564

Non-GAAP pro forma net loss $(13,595) $(18,906)

Non-GAAP pro forma net loss per share $(0.19) $(0.31)
Shares used in computing non-GAAP pro
forma net loss per share 70,295 61,206

SOURCE Verenium Corporation

Kelly Lindenboom, Vice President, Corporate Communications, +1-617-674-5335,
kelly.lindenboom@verenium.com, or Sarah Carmody, Sr. Corporate Communications
Associate, +1-617-674-5357, sarah.carmody@verenium.com, both of Verenium
Corporation