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FF ethanol plant up and running
Published 11:15 a.m., March 21, 2008
Photo by Zak Holtan
The ethanol plant in Fergus Falls now is operating.
After three years of planning and construction, the Fergus Falls ethanol plant, owned by Otter Tail Ag Enterprises (OTAE), is in operation.
“For a project of this magnitude, to be on time and on budget, is a compliment to a whole lot of folks,” OTAE Board of Governors Chairman Jerry Larson said. “We’ve been fortunate to have a list of successful contractors meeting the timeline for construction and start up.”
The ethanol plant will use about 19.5 million bushels of corn a year. It will be permitted to produce up to 65 million gallons of ethanol a year. In the start-up stages, however, production is expected to be 55 million gallons a year, according to Otter Tail Ag CEO Kelly Longtin.
“The finishing touches are being completed on the plant as we continue production,” Longtin said. “We’ll be shipping ethanol this coming week, and we’re excited about how things have come together.”
OTAE is situated on a 114-acre site located two miles northwest of Fergus Falls. Along with the production guarantee of 55 million gallons of ethanol per year, OTAE also will market dried distillers grain and wet distillers grain.
The ethanol plant is expected to provide an economic impact of close to $110 million annually, according to the Renewable Fuels Association. OTAE will have an annual payroll of more than $1.5 million per year.
“We commend all contractors and ethanol plant employees for a safe working environment through the entire project,” Longtin said. “Only minor scrapes and cuts have been reported on the project thus far. That’s a compliment to the safety programs that have been implemented by everyone involved.”
In January an additional 33 employees were hired. They completed training prior to the startup of the ethanol plant.
Ground breaking took place in October 2006. Major construction was completed by Harris Mechanical, St. Paul. Gateway Builders of Elbow Lake and Knutson Construction of Rochester were involved in the concrete, buildings and grain receiving areas.
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The Daily Journal is happy to host community conversations about news and life in Fergus Falls and the surrounding area. As hosts, we expect guests will show respect for each other. That means we don't threaten or defame each other, and we keep conversations free of personal attacks. Those who persist with racist, defamatory or abusive postings risk losing the privilege to post. To post a comment you will need to register. Or, if you're already registered but have not included your true, verifiable identity with your registration, you will need to update your account to include your identity. Effective Dec. 1, 2009, all posts appear with the commenter's true identity, which must be verified by site staff. Those who registered prior to Dec. 1, 2009, should be aware that once you update your information with your true identity, all prior posts under your user name will also indicate your true identity. If you do not wish to link yourself to prior comments, you should register again with a different user name.Posted by onlyme (gene schmidt) on March 21, 2008 at 4:42 p.m. (Suggest removal)
A BIG thanks to Harold S. of the FFEIC for all his work to bring this about!!!
Posted by Thomas (Tom Hintgen) on March 21, 2008 at 9:47 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Great to see the ethanol plant up and running....good for area farmers and for the Fergus Falls area in general...a big boost for economic development in this area of west central Minnesota......
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