Officials with Amaizing Energy in Denison have announced plans to build a 50-million gallon ethanol plant in western Iowa’s Cass County. Company Chairman Sam Cogdill says they chose to build a plant in Cass County because of it’s strategic location. He says there’s a lot of ethanol plants being built. When a circle was drawn around where those plants are located, and a determination is made of how much corn is available, Atlantic appeared to be a natural and was the second choice during planning four years ago.
When asked if the plant would be built in Atlantic, Cogdill said they have options on two sites within the county, but he would not elaborate. He says a decision on where the plant would be located is expected to be made within the next three-months. He says dirt will be turned on the project later this year, with construction likely to begin in a little over a year.
The facility — to be known as CassCo Amaizing Energy L-L-P — could be up and running as early as 2008. When it’s finished, it will produce 50-million gallons of ethanol, along with its byproducts, 160-thousand tons of distiller’s grain, and 150-thousand tons of carbon dioxide. Promoters say the plant will use 19-million bushels of corn and create up to 35-new jobs, with an annual payroll of 1-point-7-million dollars. The same company started up a new ethanol plant five months ago in Denison.