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Construction delayed on biodiesel plantCLOVIS, N.M. (AP)--A company that plans to turn animal fat into biodiesel says it will delay a proposed plant in Clovis by several months. The task of raising capital, coupled with an increase in the price of animal feed stock, caused Dallas-based American Renewable Fuels, part of Australian Renewable Fuels, to delay the project, said chief executive officer Ross Garrity. It's the second time a biodiesel plant has delayed construction in the area recently. Clovis Biodiesel earlier stopped construction on its $18 million plant, which had been slated to open this month in the Clovis Industrial Park. Officials said they hope to open the plant within a year. In addition, ConAgra Foods, parent company of Clovis Ethanol, dropped plans in January for its alternative fuel plant in Clovis, saying the ethanol market was too volatile. American Renewable Fuels had planned to begin construction this month at the industrial park, but Garrity said officials now are targeting "sort of a June-July time frame." Plans call for a 75 million-gallon-a-year biodiesel plant that would use animal feed stock such as beef tallow to produce alternative fuel. Company officials said it would create about 50 jobs. The company has finished the engineering work and has received an air quality permit from the New Mexico Environment Department, Garrity said. Chase Gentry, executive director of Clovis Industrial Development Corp., said incentives such as a 15-year tax exemption and 25 acres of land were promised to American Renewable Fuels once it amasses the capital it needs. But he said no land has been transferred and no industrial revenue bond has been approved. A lending market hit by sub-prime mortgages has made it difficult to get capital for the plant, Garrity said. He also said the company faces an inflation of prices for feed stock, although he said those prices have not climbed as much as the price of soybeans, used by most biofuel plants. Clovis Biodiesel, which proposes to make biodiesel from soybean and canola oil, had finished about 80 percent of its plant when it stopped construction. The facility, which would produce about 15 million gallons of biodiesel a year, would bring in an estimated 13 jobs, company officials said. 3/24/08 Date: 3/20/08 Advertisement
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