BlueFire Renewables signs EPC contract for cellulosic ethanol plant

US-based renewable fuels producer BlueFire Renewables has finalised and signed a new master engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for its cellulosic ethanol plant in Fulton, Mississippi.

The contract is with China International Water and Electric, a subsidiary of renewable energy company China Three Gorges (CTG).

'The master EPC structure will utilise a US-based EPC contractor to be the onsite engineering, procurement and construction team using local suppliers and craftsmen generating much needed local revenues for Itawamba County and the surrounding region,' states BlueFire CEO Arnold Klann.

The contract is to provide cost savings by leveraging CTG's relationships and experience to complete the Fulton project.

'Our support of this important commercial project is consistent with China's goals to advance the use of non-food biomass to produce renewable fuels, power and chemicals in cooperation with the US, all the while helping the environment,' says Lin Chuxue, executive VP of CTG. 'We see this relationship with BlueFire as an important step in bringing renewable cellulosic fuels and chemicals to China's burgeoning marketplace.'

Klann adds that this contract provides BlueFire a pathway for financing solutions in the US and opens opportunities in China. He says: 'With a seasoned team from a company like CTG now involved with the project, it opens doors to financing opportunities in China previously unavailable to us.'

BlueFire Renewables' plant in Fulton, Mississippi is designed to produce approximately 19 million gallons a year of cellulosic ethanol from renewable feedstocks such as green and wood wastes available in the region.