The residents of St James are suing the parish and the opportunity of a new refinery is on the horizon.
DG Fuels, a Washington, D.C., sustainable fuel company, is evaluating a 3,000-acre site in St. James Parish for a potential sustainable aviation fuel plant, Louisiana Economic Development announced Tuesday. The proposed plant would create 1,055 direct new jobs with an average annual salary of $72,000, according to an LED news release. It could also lead to another 5,231 indirect jobs. DG Fuels has an option on the site. The company has started a front-end engineering, or FEED, study on the site, which is located on the west bank of St. James Parish. That study should be complete by August, and a final investment decision on the project is expected by the end of this year. Plant construction would take about three years. DG Fuels has developed a process to take agricultural and timber waste and turn it into sustainable aviation fuel, according to LED. The plant would produce up to 178 million gallons of sustainable aviation fuel annually, LED said. Its processes should lead to carbon dioxide emissions reductions of 1.65 million tons per year.
nola.com
The comp[any is already saying they are all for the Parish but can the local population fill the jobs?
In an email, DG Fuels CEO Michael C. Darcy said the company is planning on participating in the state’s Industrial Tax Exemption and Quality Jobs programs, which provide property tax abatements and rebates on payroll and capital expenditures. However, he added that the company wants to make sure the plant’s employment is “focused in St. James Parish” and that local tax revenues “are at no point diminished below otherwise available to the Parish.” DG Fuels is far from the only company evaluating South Louisiana for a renewable fuel or biofuel project. Grön Fuels is considering building a $9.2 billion biofuel plant at the Port of Greater Baton Rouge. The company has said it expects to start providing sustainable aviation fuel to one of its key customers, JetBlue, by 2025, though it has not made a final investment decision on the project yet. Houston-based Arbor Renewable Gas is looking at Port Allen for an $800 million facility that would produce renewable gasoline and “green” hydrogen from wood waste and forest residue. Though initial estimates said Arbor Renewable Gas could start construction this year, the company has yet to announce a final investment decision on the development. Shell is also planning to transform its Convent plant from a traditional refinery to a sustainable aviation fuel and renewable diesel complex. The London petrochemical giant has projected a 2025 start date for construction for that project, though company officials have yet to confirm they’re officially moving forward with it.
The state wants more blue and green industries.
In addition, state officials are pushing for more projects in the “blue” and “green” hydrogen sectors to reduce Louisiana’s industrial carbon dioxide emissions. Hydrogen, a key feedstock for refineries and ammonia producers, is considered “blue” when coupled with carbon capture and “green” if renewable energy is involved.
A lot being done but can St James take another one?
