USDA to provide $70 million loan for biorefinery in Georgia

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently conditionally committed to a $70-million loan guarantee for a cellulosic biorefinery in Dooly County, Georgia, which would produce up to 20 million gallons of renewable fuel each year.

The loan recipient, Ensyn Georgia Biorefinery I LLC, will utilise Rapid Thermal Processing (RTP) to convert non-food-based feedstocks, like woody biomass, into a renewable fuel oil (RFO) product. The RFO produced will be suitable for use as a heating oil replacement and in the production of diesel and gasoline at other refineries.

"There is a clear consumer demand for clean, American-made, renewable fuels, which our rural communities stand ready to meet," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said. "USDA is proud to support environmentally and technologically sound projects like this one, which will increase biofuel availability nationwide and create jobs in rural Georgia. This loan commitment is the most recent example of our support for President Obama's 'all-of-the-above' energy strategy, which includes alternative and renewable fuel sources."

Ensyn estimates that the project will employ 138 people throughout its construction and create 70 permanent jobs at the biorefinery once it is complete. This supports a USDA report from June touting the economic benefits of a biobased industry, which found that the sector employed 4 million people and contributed $369 billion in 2013.