Whitefox Technologies, a leading solutions provider for ethanol and other alcohol production processes, is proud to announce Chippewa Valley Ethanol Company is to install a Whitefox ICE membrane dehydration system at its plant in Benson, Minnesota.  This is Whitefox’s second agreement this year and its first installation in the state of Minnesota.

Whitefox ICE is recognized as a proven solution to improve molecular sieve and distillation efficiency, helping to reduce energy usage and boost production capacity for the U.S. ethanol industry.  The Whitefox ICE system treats existing recycle streams to free up distillation-dehydration capacity, reduce energy by 1,000-2,500 Btu per gallon, cut carbon emissions and cooling demands, and can increase a plant’s capacity by 20 percent or more depending on the system design.

Chad Friese, general manager at Chippewa Valley Ethanol Company, said, “We are enthusiastic about the operational flexibility the Whitefox ICE membrane system will give us to adjust our product demand cycles and growth in certain markets.  With the installation of the Whitefox ICE membrane system, we expect to increase our ethanol production capacity by 7.5 million gallons per year, an increase of 15 percent or more.  This will increase our margins and overall efficiency both during regular uptime and product changeover cycles.”

Gillian Harrison, Whitefox CEO, said, “We are proud to announce our latest contract for Whitefox ICE bolt-on membrane installations in the U.S. This project with CVEC will be yet another step towards helping ethanol plants to improve their profitability and minimize waste and environmental impact by reducing natural gas, power and cooling water usage while increasing ethanol production. We look forward to announcing additional contracts in the weeks ahead as we continue to grow in the U.S.”

“CVEC is a one-of-a-kind ethanol producer, in terms of process complexity and product flexibility. We look forward to a successful project completion and start-up with this long-time innovator in the ethanol industry,” stated Paul Kamp, Whitefox VP of Business Development.

Whitefox’s Integrated Cartridge Efficiency (Whitefox ICE) is a membrane-based dehydration technology with a small footprint. It enables producers to reduce energy costs and improve carbon intensity (CI) scores, reduce cooling water costs year-round and reduce operation & maintenance costs by simplifying production, all while increasing revenues from additional ethanol capacity. Whitefox ICE can be integrated into existing corn ethanol production plants with minimal disruption. Whitefox’s membrane technology can equally be included as a technology upgrade in new greenfield plants.