Zeachem to commence construction of cellulosic ethanol demonstration plant before year end

In Oregon, Zeachem announced that it will commence construction of its cellulosic ethanol demonstration plant in Boardman before the end of the year, but added that, as the company is doing modular design and fabricating process components in fabrication shops and integrating those pieces on site, official groundbreaking at the Port of Morrow will take place at a later, unreleased date.

The company said it will employ 75 workers during construction beginning early next year and reduce that to an operating staff of 20 when the plant is operational, the $40-$60 million demonstration plant will produce 1.5 Mgy of cellulosic ethanol, but added that its first produce will be ethyl acetate, a solvent found in paints and decaffeinated coffee, citing an offtake contract with a “major chemical company”.

The company has reserved an additional 35 acres of land at the Port of Morrow towards a commercial-scale plant, and said the decision to move to commercial-scale would be taken at least six months after completion of the demonstration.

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