Alliance Bio-Products, Inc., has announced that it has received approval from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Office of Rural Development for the collateral purchase of a closed cellulosic ethanol facility in Indian River County, Florida.
US-based Alliance Bio-Products, Inc., a special purpose company to own and operate ethanol plants in the United States and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Alliance BioEnergy Plus, Inc, a company that develops cellulosic ethanol plant projects through joint ventures, licenses as well as own and operate company-owned facilities has announced that it has received approval from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Office of Rural Development for the collateral purchase of the shuttered INEOS cellulosic ethanol facility in Indian River County, Florida.
According to a statement, the approved purchase includes the “fully functional” plant along with the around 143 acres (≈ 57 ha) property the plant is sited on and all related equipment and vehicle fleet. Alliance Bio-Products made an offer to purchase the 8 million gallon (≈ 30.28 million litre) per annum cellulosic ethanol facility with the intention of converting the current process into its patented Cellulose to Sugar (CTS) process under an agreement with Alliance BioEnergy.
By renovating the plant and utilising a state-of-the-art fermentation and distillation system already in place, and with an abundance of free feedstock available, the company believes it can increase production capacity and profitability of its biofuel alternative to petroleum-based fuels and other products. The plant also sits on a large parcel of land that would allow the company to expand as demand increases.
Through renovation and the implementation of our revolutionary CTS process, we’ll be able to expand our production capacity while also shortening turnaround times – a key to ramping up production quickly and bringing our product to market at scale. We have long had the most innovative technology on the market in regards to biofuel production, but did not have the means to fully utilize its potential until now. Combining our industry leading technology with a plant of this capacity will allow us to meet the growing needs of the market, said Ben Slager, Chief Technology Officer, Alliance Bio-Products, Inc.
According to the company, its patented CTS process allows it to produce biofuels for less than US$1 per gallon (≈ 3.78 litres) and expects that it will be able to begin production at the plant by summer of 2018. Furthermore, it will look to double annual capacity to 16 million gallons (≈ 60.56 million litres) in 2020 before maximising the capacity of 34 million gallons (≈ 121.12 million litres) in 2023. The purchase of the plant is being funded through a mixture of debt and equity.
We are thrilled to have been awarded approval to purchase this plant and take this significant step forward toward commercialised production at scale. By purchasing and renovating an already built facility, we’ll reduce our capital expenditure significantly allowing us to market years ahead of building from scratch. We have received tremendous support through our 506(c) equity offering, and expect the opportunity to close quickly now that the purchase has been approved. In combination with some of our other production partnerships in place, we believe we are in a strong position to begin generating significant revenues and bringing increased value to our shareholders, said Daniel de Liege, Chairman, Alliance Bio-Products, Inc.
