The state of Wisconsin has agreed a $1.9 million loan to support a biofuels project in the City of Greenwood.
The award came as Caseus Energy, LLC, via its subsidiary DuBay Biofuels-Greenwood, broke ground on a facility that will turn waste from the cheese production process into ethanol fuel using a yeast-based technology.
With a total investment of about $7.6 million, the plant is to have a production capacity of three million gallons of ethanol each year. It will also produce three million pounds of active dry yeast as a co-product each year.
State officials said the project will create 28 jobs. It is expected to be operational in the first quarter of 2011.
Speaking at the ground-breaking ceremony last week, Governor Doyle said: “We are moving Wisconsin forward in difficult national economic times by investing in our businesses and making them more efficient and competitive. With this funding, we will be able to help these companies establish plants and create good jobs for hardworking people in Wisconsin.”
Caseus Energy, which has its corporate office in Los Angeles, California, has field tested its proprietary process at a facility in Stratford, Wisconsin, since 2004.
The company is aiming to develop a series of plants around the country to make use of the by products as 10 billion pounds of cheese are produced in the US each year.
“The resounding support of the Governor’s office and the Department of Commerce have been absolutely pivotal for this project to go forward,” said Alex Reyter, CEO of Caseus Energy LLC.
“This funding shows what can happen when the private sector and the public sector work together to advance programs that benefit the environment, reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and imported fuels and create well paying jobs for America’s workers.”
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