Another planned biodiesel plant acquisition

This year has been brimming with biodiesel M&A activity in the U.S., as I have written about previously. This morning, another anticipated plant acquisition was announced, this time in Canada.

Cielo Waste Solutions Corp. has signed a commercial purchase agreement with XR Resources Inc. to buy property in High River, Alberta, which includes a 16 MMly (4.2 MMgy) multifeedstock biodiesel plant.

According to Cielo Waste Solutions, the facility was built in 2009 for $10.2 million. The company says it will buy the property for $2.3 million, with 5 million common shares at 6 cents apiece and $2 million in cash. 

The purchase is subject to certain conditions, according to Cielo, including a financing condition, Cielo's ability to acquire required permits, and due diligence being completed by Cielo to its satisfaction on or before Feb. 7.

Once the conditions have been fulfilled or waived, and the purchase price paid, Cielo will acquire all right, title and interest in and to the property and biodiesel refinery.

“This is a game changer for Cielo,” said Don Allan, the president and CEO of Cielo, in a press release. “Not only will this fast-track Cielo into commercialization and revenue, but the existing infrastructure that we can use will lower our capex costs by approximately 40 percent.”

The anticipated closing date is Feb. 28.

I called Mr. Allan this morning to ask him more questions about the deal but I got his voicemail. His outgoing message said he was traveling a lot lately and the best way to reach him was via email, so I sent him a message as well. After publication he responded to my email and we're setting up a time to talk. I'll update this post afterwards. 

*Editor's Note: An updated news article on this topic can be viewed here.