REG Starts Upgrade Project at Minnesota Biodiesel Facility

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Renewable Energy Group Incorporated (NASDAQ:REGI) (Ames, Iowa) and subsidiary REG Albert Lea LLC (Albert Lea, Minnesota) have started work on process upgrades to their biodiesel plant's upstream feedstock system to make the plant more flexible when handling low-cost feedstocks during times of high soybean commodity prices.

The project involves the installation of a new fatty acid stripper and distillation systems that will allow the plant to process low-cost waste vegetable oils, inedible corn oil extracted from the backend of an ethanol plant production process, and animal and poultry fats.

The 30 million-gallon-per-year plant that was originally built by SoyMor was designed to handle only pure vegetable and soybean oils. REG took ownership of the idled facility back in 2011 and brought it back online in August 2011. The upgrades are expected to be completed by June 2013.

Mechanical upgrades are being handled by contractor Baker Mechanical Incorporated (Des Moines, Iowa).

REG has operating biodiesel plants in Albert Lee, Minnesota; Danville, Illinois; Houston, Texas; Newton and Ralston, Iowa; and Seneca, Illinois. The combined capacity of the six plants is estimated to be about 212 million gallons annually.

Industrial Info's databases provide a comprehensive outline of all current development activities in the emerging alternative fuels market. Our North American Biodiesel Database covers 150 operational plants and 93 plants in development. Our North American Ethanol Database covers 214 operational plants and 102 plants in various phases of development. Our North American Wood Fuel Pellet Database includes 70 operational plants producing more than 25,000 tons annually and 35 projects in progress.

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