NOVELTY - Producing biomass or at least one biomolecule involves culturing a photosynthetic microorganism that comprises a disrupted Non-Photochemical Quenching (NPQ) process under intermittent light conditions in a suitable culture medium, and isolating biomass or at least one biomolecule from the culture.    USE - For producing biomass or at least one biomolecule (e.g. fatty acid or fatty acid derivative (claimed), lipid, protein, peptide, amino acid, carbohydrate, isotopically labeled compound, vitamin, nucleotide, pigment, terpenoid, and carotenoid), which is useful as fuels, fuel additives, or fuel precursors, including fuel feedstocks, as well as biomolecules that are useful as chemical, lubricants, surfactants, and/or detergents.    ADVANTAGE - The amount of biomass or a biomolecule produced by the culture is at least 20% greater than the amount of biomass or a biomolecule produced by an identical culture of a microorganism identical in all respects except that it does not have a disrupted NPQ process. The photosynthetic microorganism produces at least 0.3 g/l of biomass. The amount of free fatty acid or fatty acid derivative produced is greater than the amount of free fatty acid or fatty acid derivative produced by an identical culture of a photosynthetic microorganism identical in all respects except that it does not have a disrupted NPQ process that is grown under identical conditions. The microorganism with a disrupted NPQ process exhibits less NPQ than does a control photosynthetic microorganism in which synthesis of a carotenoid or expression of a carotenoid binding protein is not disrupted. Disrupting the NPQ process reduces or inhibits the expression of the OCP in the microorganism, e.g. by removing all or a portion of an OCP gene in the microorganism, by disrupting OCP gene of a photosynthetic microorganism by insertional mutagenesis, and/or by reducing expression of an OCP gene in the microorganism. Disrupting the production of carotenoids and/or a carotenoid binding protein, such as OCP, in a microorganism can increase the biomass production of the microorganism.