Exclusive: Dreyfus to Build Major Biofuels Plant in Indiana

The plant will be built as part of an approximately 280-acre agro-industrial park that was announced last May for the Kosciusko County community of Claypool. “It’s huge for a number of reasons,” says Fort Wayne-Allen County Economic Development Alliance President Rob Young. “It’s a great name to be associated with for this area; it diversifies the economy and the investment in the community is substantial,” said Young.

The Indiana Department of Environmental Management granted Louis Dreyfus Agricultural Industries LLC – Claypool a New Source Title V air quality permit on January 24. The source location is E of SR 15 between CR 700 S and 800 S near Claypool in Kosciusko County.

County Commissioner Avis Gunter tells Inside INdiana Business that the project, which is expected to initially employ 80 workers, has been in the works for some months. She says the facility will be a high-tech plant.

In May, 2005, Inside INdiana Business reported on plans by the Dreyfus subsidiary to invest in a three-phase project that would include a $100 million soybean processing plant, an 80 million gallon biodiesel plant and a 100 million gallon ethanol plant. Sources say necessary internal company approvals and environmental permits put those plans on hold until now.

The U.S. Energy Bill signed into law by President Bush in 2004 mandates that the United States use 7.5 billion gallons of renewable fuels annually by 2012, a mark the nation is expected now to hit by 2008. Purdue Professor of Agricultural Economics Chris Hurt tells Inside INdiana Business that Indiana is expected to be a major player in the growth of the biofuels industry. Hurt estimates that by 2008, 22 percent of the corn grown in Indiana will be used for ethanol production. He says Indiana has not been a leader in renewable fuels in the past, but that could be changing.

Governor Mitch Daniels this afternoon announced at a national renewable energy summit in Washington, D.C. that the two-phase project will first include a 50-million bushel per year soybean processing plant, and the second phase will be the biodiesel production facility.

Source: Inside INdiana Business

Press Release

WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 8, 2006) – Indiana’s pace of rapid growth in bioenergy and energy self-sufficiency took another step forward today as Governor Mitch Daniels announced that Louis Dreyfus Agriculture Industries LLC plans to build the world’s largest biodiesel plant near Claypool, Indiana. With this facility, two other biodiesel and six ethanol plants currently under construction, Indiana will become a leading producer in the biofuels industry.

“It’s been a hectic year of dramatic progress in renewable fuels development in our state. If Indiana can do this, think what America can do to work toward energy self-sufficiency. In just one year, we’re growing from one alternative fuels plant to nine, with more to come. We said our ag sector would be a big part of our economic comeback, and here’s the proof,” said Daniels, who made the announcement during his remarks at the 2nd National Agriculture/Forestry Renewable Energy Summit in Washington, D.C.

Indiana is the fifth largest corn state and the fourth largest soybean state and with the facilities under construction, the state will produce an additional 400 million gallons of ethanol annually and 95 million gallons of biodiesel (including Louis Dreyfus). Indiana’s goal is to produce a combined 1 billion gallons of ethanol and biodiesel annually.

Through the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) and the Indiana State Department of Agriculture, the state has reached an agreement with Louis Dreyfus to build the project in two phases. The first will be a 50-million bushel per year soybean processing plant, and the second phase will be the biodiesel production facility. The facilities will be located near Claypool in Kosciusko County in northeastern Indiana. The plant will utilize Indiana soybeans.

Upon completion, the Louis Dreyfus facility will be one of the world’s first biodiesel production plants to be fully integrated with a soybean processing plant. About 260,000 metric tons of soybean oil from the plant will be used each year for biodiesel production. In addition, 1 million tons of protein rich soybean meal produced each year will be used by the livestock and poultry industry. The biodiesel plant will produce up to 250,000 gallons of biodiesel per day, or more than 80 million gallons per year. Eighty-five ongoing jobs will be created at the plant, and it is estimated that 300 people will be employed during the 12 to 18 month construction phase of the facility.

“We believe Claypool represents an ideal site for this investment in the growing and dynamic biofuels space,” said Erik Anderson, chief executive officer of Louis Dreyfus Commodities North America. “Ample soybean supplies coupled with deep local markets for feed and biodiesel consumption made Indiana our top choice for this facility. We would like to thank Governor Daniels and the state of Indiana for their support, and for their vision of agricultural investment as a growth engine for Indiana’s economy and of biofuels as a solution to the nation’s dependence on imported oil.”

“Today’s announcement says to the nation that Indiana is a state serious about being a leader in biofuels,” remarked Lt. Governor Becky Skillman, who serves as Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development and oversees the Indiana Office of Energy and Defense Development. “We are being aggressive in bringing cutting edge agri-business to Indiana. The benefits will be seen in our state’s large and small, rural and urban communities. I thank Louis Dreyfus for its commitment to Indiana’s future.”

Louis Dreyfus, founded in 1851, operates in more than 50 countries. Its major international offices are located in Parison, London, Buenos Aires, Sao Paulo and Beijing, and in the United States, Louis Dreyfus operates export elevators in Houston and Beaumont, Texas, and Seattle, with grain elevators on the Illinois River.

The IEDC offered economic development incentives, including up to $95,000 in training grants, $137,500 in infrastructure assistance to the local community, and up to $5.295 million in tax credits based on anticipated employment and capital investment levels.

The governor was in Washington, D.C., to speak at the 2nd National Agriculture/Forestry Renewable Energy Summit. The summit, organized by the 25 x ’25 Working Group, brought together more than 70 organizations which support a vision of providing 25 percent of the country’s energy needs from renewable sources by 2025.

Daniels was one of two governors asked to speak at the summit. He was selected because of Indiana’s rapid progress in bioenergy – not only becoming a leader in biodiesel production but also for ground-breaking programs such as BioTown, USA, an effort to create a community where all energy needs are met through the use of biorenewable resources.

Source: Office of Governor Mitch Daniels