Grand Forks plant to produce advanced biofuels using locally-sourced feedstock
At a groundbreaking ceremony Wednesday, Aug. 22, BioMass Solution LLC celebrated the start of construction on a new 80,000 sq. ft. refinery that will convert more than 500,000 metric tons of agricultural byproduct annually into advanced biofuels to be sold in the transportation fuels marketplace.
The Grand Forks Region EDC has been working with the company since 2014, when they first identified the region for Red River Biorefinery, its first U.S.-based production facility.
“This is an exciting development for the region, one that will have a tremendous economic impact,” said EDC President & CEO Keith Lund. “The company was attracted here by our strong agribusiness sector and the robust infrastructure we have been developing for decades. They are bringing an innovative technology to greater Grand Forks that will have far-reaching environmental benefits, as well as add value to our established industries.”
The economic impact to the region, Lund says, will be significant, with more than $35 million invested with local companies during the construction phase and more than 150 construction related jobs.
Once operational in 2020, the refinery expects to employ 25 full-time employees. In addition, the company projects secondary employment, primarily in the transportation sector, will exceed 20 full-time employees.
“Biomass Solution chose Grand Forks for a number of reasons,” said Keshav Rajpal, Biomass Solution principal. “It’s a great central hub with a lot of ag processing and great infrastructure that makes it ideal for transportation and logistics. There is a strong university and workforce reputation.”
Red River Biorefinery has long-term partnerships with several companies that will supply the feedstock to be used for high-value biofuel conversion. “Our focus is to bring together complete project financing, proven technologies, experienced implementation, and operating partners to successfully deploy solutions which minimize risk,” Rajpal said.
BioMass Solution Principal Jacek Chmielewski added, “The marketplace is excited about using proven technologies with successful track records to monetize organic waste streams. The design of Red River Biorefinery allows for operating flexibility while maximizing end-product value for our customers. This makes the facility an attractive and replicable model for agricultural and organic waste management.”