The head of the Jasper County Economic Development Corporation (JEDCO) hopes the re-instatement of the biodiesel. tax credit and the market conditions will help the industry get back on its feet. Corporation executive director Craig Hamilton, says the plant located northeast of Newton should be able to take advantage of market changes.
Hamilton says the Newton plant can generate biodiesel. from a variety of feedstocks, so it is not dependent on soybean oil, which is still way up in price. He says the plant was never fully shut down, so it shouldn’t take much to get it running again if there’s enough market demand. Hamilton believes that market demand will be there is this new year.
Hamilton says with the price of oil hitting 100-dollars-a-barrel and gas going over three-dollars a gallon — along with the production credit — there’s no reason why biodiesel shouldn’t see a resurgence this year. The Newton plant is owned by the Renewable Energy Group.
By Randy Van, KCOB, Newton