Houston, Texas-based company Natural Chem Group LLC has acquired the mothballed ethanol plant of Abengoa Bioenergy in Portales, New Mexico.

The acquisition was made through a bankruptcy auction after the US bioenergy unit of Spanish group Abengoa SA (BME:ABG) filed for Chapter 11 protection earlier this year.

The new owner is to use the facility to make biodiesel fuel blends, mainly B20. According to an announcement this week, Natural Chem will redevelop the plant into an Eco-Fuels Blend Terminal with the capacity to produce 4.5 million gallons (17 million litres) of B20 per month.

The plant was the only commercial-scale ethanol production facility in the state of New Mexico. Built in 1984, it was idled in 2012.

Abengoa already auctioned five US ethanol plants in August, with Green Plains Inc (NASDAQ:GPRE) acquiring three facilities -- in Madison, Illinois; Mount Vernon, Indiana; and York, Nebraska -- for USD 237 million (EUR 221m).

 

Source: http://renewables.seenews.com/news/natural-chem-buys-abengoa-ethanol-plant-in-new-mexico-547319