The company said that this loan will be used to partially finance the first two phases of construction of its commercial cellulosic biofuels plant using renewable and sustainable supplies of non-food biomass near Soperton, Georgia. The first phase is scheduled to be completed this month, with production scheduled to commence in the second quarter of this year.
The loan guarantee is the result of efforts between the USDA Office of Rural Development, AgSouth Farm Credit, and Range Fuels.
The loan guarantee is a part of USDA’s Section 9003 Biorefinery Assistance Program authorized by the 2008 Farm Bill, which provides loan guarantees for commercial-scale biorefineries and grants for demonstration-scale biorefineries that produce advanced biofuels or any fuel that is not corn-based.
The Biorefinery Assistance program is intended to assist in developing new and emerging technologies that produce advanced biofuels to increase the nation’s energy independence; promote resource conservation, public health, and the environment; diversify markets for agricultural products and waste material and spur rural economic development.
Dallas Tonsager, under secretary for Rural Development, said: “USDA’s investment in the construction of Range Fuels’ commercial facility, which will produce cellulosic biofuels from non-food biomass, such as wood chips, demonstrates the Obama Administration’s goal to make the US a leader in renewable energy production and furthers the president’s ongoing efforts to bring jobs to rural communities.”
