Colombo Energy Expects New South Carolina Fuel Pellet Mill to be Fully Operational by Mid-2017

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Portuguese pulp and paper maker Grupo Portucel Soporcel (Setubal, Portugal), which formally changed its name to "The Navigator Company" early last year, and its Greenwood, South Carolina-based subsidiary, Colombo Energy Incorporated, expect to have a new U.S. fuel pellet production facility operational by the middle of 2017.

The Greenwood County, South Carolina, project marks the Portuguese company's first dive into the U.S. market.

Prodesa Medioambiente SL (Zaragoza, Spain), the company providing the hammer mills, pellet machines and presses for the project, has completed numerous performance tests and expects the new fuel pellet mill to be fully operational by late June or July. Additional contractors include Bruks USA (Alpharetta, Georgia) which provided the woodyard, receiving and chipping systems; and TSI Incorporated (Lynwood, Washington), which provided the huge dryer island. Moss Construction Management (Greenville) constructed the pellet press building, hammer mill, office and welfare structures.

The Navigator Company is Portugal's third leading exporter, generating the highest National Value Added with an annual revenue of more than €1.6 billion (US$1.8 billion). The company accounts for about 1% of Portugal's GDP, around 3% of the country's total exports of goods, nearly 8% of all containerized cargo and 7% of all containerized and conventional cargo exported through Portuguese ports, according to the company.

Industrial Info first reported on the project in 2015. For more information, see April 14, 2015, article - Portugal's Portucel Soporcel Sets Sights on U.S. Fuel Pellet Market.

Construction is winding down at the project's 125-acre site, located in the Emerald Road Industrial Corridor about five miles east of Greenwood near the Fujifilm Manufacturing USA facility.

The estimated $119 million plant will process woody forest material into of 460,000 tons of fuel pellets per year and will benefit from Greenwood County's forestry raw materials and available energy.

The company said before construction began that it had already secured sales of 70% for its production through 10-year fixed-priced supply contracts, with the sales targeted entirely at the European industrial market.

The plant will be one of the largest mills of its kind in the U.S. Some 70 jobs will be created and the new venture is expected to generate more than $80 million in sales annually. The company is currently hiring for all available positions.

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