Xethanol acquires another East Coast facility

October 26, 2006

BY Dave Nilles

New York-based biotech company Xethanol Corp. announced today it has finalized the acquisition of a former North Carolina fiberboard factory, which the company plans to convert the facility into a cellulose-to-ethanol plant.

Plans for the $4 million purchase were announced in early August. The 200,000-square foot plant, which is located in Spring Hope, N.C., was formerly operated by Carolina Fiberboard Corp. LLC. Xethanol plans to produce 35 MMgy of ethanol from locally sourced hardwood chips and wood waste under the name Spring Hope BioFuels LLC.

"We are very excited by the closing of this transaction as it represents a further milestone in our planned expansion on the East Coast," said David Ames, who was named Xethanol president and CEO Nov. 10 after Louis Bernstein resigned from the company.

Xethanol plans to produce 5 MMgy of ethanol approximately six months after retrofitting the North Carolina plant. The company said it will use the plant's existing pulp digesters and dilute acid hydrolysis technology to convert cellulose to fermentable sugars. Enzymatic hydrolysis will progressively be introduced as it becomes economically feasible, the company said.

The North Carolina acquisition was the second this year along the East Coast. In July, Xethanol subsidiary CoastalXethanol LLC acquired a Pfizer Inc. manufacturing facility in Augusta, Ga., with the intention of building a 35 MMgy cellulosic ethanol plant on the 40-acre site.

Xethanol also broke ground in September on a 35 MMgy expansion of its Blairstown, Iowa, facility. Praj Industries is supplying process technology for the plant, which is expected to being operation in late 2007. Aventine Renewable Energy is slated to market the facility's ethanol.

Xethanol Biofuels LLC
Location: Blairstown, Iowa
Design/builder: Xethanol Corp.
Process technology: Praj Industries
Capacity: from 5.5 MMgy to 35 MMgy
Feedstock: corn
Ethanol marketer: Aventine Renewable Energy
Distillers grains marketer: D&R Feed
Carbon dioxide marketer: N/A
Broke ground: September 2006
Target start-up date: fourth quarter 2007

Dave Nilles is Online Editor for Ethanol Producer Magazine. Reach him at dnilles@bbibiofuels.com or (701) 373-0636.

Posted: 2:15 p.m. CST Tuesday, November 14, 2006

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