Maxygen Inc. (MAXY)

[surf1944]

Maxygen to Receive $7 Million From BioFuel Collaboration Between Shell and Codexis
Monday November 19, 9:00 am ET

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Nov. 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Maxygen, Inc. (Nasdaq: MAXY - News) announced today that it expects to recognize approximately $7 million in revenue in the fourth quarter of 2007 under the terms of Maxygen's license agreement with Codexis Inc.

The payment reflects the expanded collaboration agreement between Royal Dutch Shell plc and Codexis, announced November 6, 2007, for the development of new super enzymes to convert biomass to fuel. The expanded agreement covers five years of research collaboration. In addition Shell made an equity investment in Codexis as part of a larger financing. This financing reduces Maxygen's ownership in Codexis to approximately 25% of Codexis' outstanding shares. Maxygen owns approximately 8.9 million shares of various classes of Codexis preferred stock convertible into common shares and shares of Codexis common stock. The convertible preferred stock of the most recent Codexis financing is senior in liquidation preference to Maxygen's shares and was sold at a price of $8.50 per share.

"We are pleased with the continuing success and increasing value of Codexis' business," said Russell Howard, chief executive officer of Maxygen. "Leveraging Maxygen's MolecularBreeding(TM) technology outside the pharmaceutical industry has provided us with a good source of non-dilutive financing to help drive our protein therapeutic business."

Maxygen established Codexis in 2003 as a spin-out company, and granted to Codexis exclusive licenses to use Maxygen's MolecularBreeding(TM) directed evolution platform for certain chemical applications. In December 2006, Maxygen expanded the scope of exclusive licenses previously granted to include certain applications relating to energy, including biofuels.

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