Renewable Energy Group, Inc. (REG) welcomed local, state and industry leaders today (Wednesday) to commemorate the completion of upgrades to their Ralston biodiesel facility. The $32 million expansion more than doubled the plant’s production from 12 million gallons per year to 30 million gallons. REG broke ground in November of 2016, and Manufacturing Operations Executive Director, Derek Winkel, says no system went untouched during the 16-month project.
Nearly 150,000 man hours were required to finish construction and up to 165 workers were onsite at various stages of the project. REG Board Chairman, Jeff Stroburg, says the most impressive aspect of this endeavor was how safely it was managed.
To increase production to 30 million gallons per year, three miles of new pipes requiring 10,750 welds were installed and 42,000 feet of conduit were placed containing 542,000 feet of new wiring. The facility uses soybean oil from a nearby Landus Cooperative soy crush plant to produce biodiesel. American Soybean Association (ASA) CEO, Ryan Findlay, says efforts like this are the basis of value-added agriculture.
REG is the nation’s leading producer of biodiesel with 13 biomass refineries in the United States and Europe. With the new facility online, REG now has a combined effective production capacity of 565 million gallons per year.
