In the United States (US), Boston based advanced biofuel producer, World Energy, LLC (World Energy) has announced that it has partnered to accelerate growth with an investment group led by Canadian investor Halifax, Nova Scotia (NS) based CFFI Ventures (CFFI). The deal, with an aggregate value of US$345 million, infuses into World Energy substantial fresh capital and merges into it all the shares of Canadian biodiesel producer Hamilton, Ontario (ON) based Biox Corporation (Biox).
The investment group, led by CFFI CEO John Risley, includes the family office of Toronto based Woodbridge Group founder Bob Beamish as well as Biox founder, Tim Haig. Risley will become World Energy’s Chairman and World Energy Founder Gene Gebolys will continue as CEO.
World Energy first teamed up with Biox in 2016 to acquire and operate a 90 million gallon per year biodiesel plant in Houston, Texas (TX). Biox also operates a 16 million gal per year biodiesel plant in Hamilton, ON and is developing a 12 million gallon per year combination renewable diesel/biodiesel plant in Sombra, Ontario (ON). In September 2017 CFFI took Biox private in a deal valued at US$65 million.
Earlier this month, World Energy announced that it had acquired the 45 million gallon a year southern California renewable diesel producer AltAir Paramount, LLC and all of its associated assets including a 63-acre refinery complex with 1.7 million barrels of product storage, a truck rack with 28 thousand barrels per day of throughput capacity, rail storage for up to 70 rail cars, and pipelines stretching over 71 miles connecting the facility to major southern California distribution hubs including Long Beach.
World Energy’s moves into California and Ontario are part of a broader effort to build out a large-scale coast to coast presence for blended advanced biofuel supply targeting high growth submarkets focused on reducing carbon intensity in motor fuels.
