Oilsource Holding, LLC and Greenline Industries, LLC have announced a plan to jointly develop a 60 million gallon per year biodiesel plant, to be commissioned by the first quarter of 2009. The plant -- the largest in the Southeastern U.S. -- will be located in Miami, Florida, with rail spur access for distribution within a ninety-mile radius of three of Florida's most important ports.
The project is planned to be completed in three phases with a vertically integrated business strategy and reaching its target capacity in the third phase. The estimated $96 million investment will represent over $1 billion flowing through the economy of Florida.
According to company sources, biodiesel reduces greenhouse gases emissions by almost 80% and has lower level of emissions of several air pollutants compared to traditional diesel. Nevertheless, biofuels made from vegetable oil often competes with food security in some regions; such is the case of biodiesel from soybeans or ethanol from corn. In a nod to these issues, Oilsource says that it will use vegetable oil from non-food crops (like jatropha and waste oil from restaurants) or those with less impact on the food chain (like palm or coconut oil).
