North Dakota gives $50,000 to Lakota Biofuels for feasibility study

In North Dakota, the Agricultural Products Utilization Commission granted $50,000 to Lakota Biofuels towards its feasibility analysis for a proposed 55 Mgy ethanol plant in Nelson County near Lakota. The Commission made grants of $309,000 to nine groups in all, out of eleven applicants.

The study was approved even as North Dakota experiences growing pains in ethanol. Last month, the Alchem ethanol plant in Grafton, ND shut down production due to low ethanol prices. Alchem makes about 10.5 million gallons of ethanol a year and 33,00 tons of livestock feed, using about 3.8 million bushels of corn.
North Dakota Sen. Byron Dorgan recently touted his legislation to set up tax incentives to stimulate installation of E85 pumps, the lack of which are a primary opportunity for ethanol expansion.

But Mike Rud, president of the North Dakota Petroleum Marketers Association, said that fuel marketers need upfront incentive money, not tax incentives, because fuel marketers don’t make money at the pump and so tax incentives are not helpful. Rud added that there are only about two dozen E85 pumps in North Dakota and that there is little demand from consumers to add more.

Expansion efforts continue in the state. Great River Energy, Cargill and Newman Group recently commenced construction on the $500 million Spiritwood Station complex that will include a 100 Mgy ethanol plant. The complex will also feature a coal-based power plant that will produce electricity for the Great River member co-ops in Minnesota, as well as steam for a Cargill malt processor and the ethanol plant. Buffalo Creek Energy has announced that they are developing a $109 million project in the state.

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