In May 2023, OptiCept Technologies entered an agreement with Guangxi Shichen Group (“GSG”), in collaboration with the Chinese state research institute Guangxi Academy of Forestry, to evaluate the OptiBoost technology on several different types of cuttings to improve its rooting. Today, OptiCept announces the first partial results. Acacia cuttings treated with the patented vacuum impregnation technology show an average improved rooting of 12-33% after 45 days, with the final assessment made after 90 days. Results from the evaluation of Camelia will be available in 2024 when tests for Eucalyptus also will be carried out.

“These are very positive results that further strengthen our position. The increased proportion of rooted cuttings creates great value for growers. Many forest companies we are in discussions with usually grow Eucalyptus and/or Acacia. These successful results mean that we have the potential to strengthen and broaden our offer. It also strengthens confidence in the technology, which shows the industry that there is great potential in the treatment. In this test, the control group is also pre-treated for rooting improvement, meaning, there is even greater potential in the product for growers who do not want or cannot use these products”. Says Thomas Lundqvist, CEO at OptiCept Technologies.

Acacia is a large genus with many species. Cultivation of Acacia is particularly common in China, Southeast Asia, South America, Africa, and in Australia, where Acacia forest is the second most common forest type after Eucalyptus forest. Acacia is one of the most cultivated trees in the southern hemisphere and is a fast-growing species that can grow in harsh conditions that other species cannot, which can quickly generate yields.

About the pilot project
The state research institute Guangxi Academy of Forestry was founded in 1956. They are a key player and research center supporting the development of fast-growing wood processing in southern China and act as the supporting unit of four provincial-level state forestry key laboratories.

Guangxi Shichen Group (“GSG”) is a PlantTech company and a multi-investment group headquartered in Nanjing, Guangxi. Its main activities include landscape development and investment, agriculture and forestry infrastructure investment, forest technology and engineering, etc. They also own a plantation base of 26.64 million square meters. Guangxi is the center of the forestry industry in China, which has an annual turnover of EUR 120 billion.

The pilot project’s goal is to improve the rooting of cuttings from Acacia, Eucalyptus, Camelia, and other local varieties using OptiCept's patented OptiBoost technology which is based on vacuum impregnation. Cuttings are placed in a vacuum chamber and impregnated with a nutrient liquid. Pressure parameters and a nano-based nutrient solution interact to give the cuttings the best possible conditions to take root and thus grow into a full-grown tree.

The pilot project creates enormous advantages for OptiCept in being able to quickly demonstrate a working technology and the opportunity to be able to position itself in the market.