The facility will employ a proprietary enzymatic hydrolysis process to convert 600,000 tons of energy grasses per annum into 20 million gallons of cellulosic ethanol.
Biofuels Center of North Carolina is partnering Chemtex for the said project.
The company secured loan guarantee under Agriculture department’s Rural Development Bio-refinery Assistance Program.
Commenting on the approval of the said loan guarantee Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack underlined the department’s focus on producing renewable energy from various non-food sources that includes energy grasses.
"The facility we are announcing today will help create more than 300 jobs in North Carolina and is a perfect example of how producing home-grown energy is good for the economy and good for our energy future," added Vilsack.
The company will solicit local farmers to grow the required energy grasses for the facility, who are expected to be one of the major beneficiaries of the project.
