The construction of the Red River Biorefinery is nearing completion


Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF.

According to local media, the construction of the Red River Biorefinery in Grand Forks (North Dakota, USA) is nearing completion. The company is expecting to make its first sales in the new year.
News (Grand Forks Herald, Adam Kurtz): “Grand Forks biorefinery construction nears completion, prepares to 'ramp up'”, 15/11/2019.
News (Knox News Radio, Doug Barrett): “Red River Biorefinery – GF”, 3/10/2019.

Figure 1. Red River Biorefinery under construction (extracted from Knox News Radio website)

The 80,000-square-foot (nearly 7,500 m2) plant, which broke ground in August 2018, will transform sugar beet and potato processing wastes into low carbon intensity cellulosic ethanol, animal feed and renewable natural gas (RNG). The market for the ethanol is primarily California and other parts of the West Coast and Canada because its price is higher there. BioMass Solution LLC is the promotor and Biotechnika (Polish biotech company) is the licensor, designer and main technology supplier.
Further information about the project here: “Construction works on Red River Biorefinery commences in North Dakota”, 27/8/2018.

The poor harvest this autumn, brought on by heavy rains and an early October snow, should not affect operations of the facility as it has yet to fully ramp up. The company intends to store the beet tailings on a two-acre site as it starts-up the facility. The Grand Forks Planning and Zoning Commission approved the Conditional Use Permit for the temporary storage early October.

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