An undated aerial photo shows the Ag Processing Inc. complex near Sergeant Bluff. The company is preparing to start a $38 million expansion and construction of a $90 million vegetable oil refining facility.
SERGEANT BLUFF | The world's largest farmer‐owned soybean processor is preparing to build a $90 million vegetable oil refinery near Sergeant Bluff that will create 20 new jobs.
Ag Processing Inc. announced the large-scale expansion in early January. Construction is expected to begin later this year, with completion anticipated for spring 2017.
The vegetable oil refinery will be built on the same 85-acre site in rural Woodbury County where AGP already operates a soybean-processing plant and a biodiesel plant. The coop currently employs about 100 at the complex, located just south of Sergeant Bluff.
"We like the idea of being able to expand here and not going somewhere else," AGP Group Vice President Cal Meyer said.
AGP CEO Keith Spackler noted the existing plants convert soybeans into high-performance soy protein for the dairy industry, and clean-burning fuel for diesel engines.
“Adding the capability to refine crude soybean oil is a natural progression," Spackler said.
The new refinery will include crude oil filtration, degumming, refining, bleaching and deodorizing processes, and will be supported by a new water cooling tower and a new well system.
Most of the estimated project costs will be $71.5 million for new machinery and equipment. Other big-ticket items are $2.5 million for site preparation and $14.5 million for construction.
The state of Iowa and Woodbury County have agreed to contribute more than $3 million in tax incentives for the project.
The agreement with the county will exempt AGP from $2.1 million in county property taxes over nine years, through 2024.
The state Economic Development Authority will kick in nearly $1 million in incentives under the state's High Quality Jobs Program, including $152,000 for forgivable or interest-free loans, and about $800,000 in various tax state credits.
Of the new jobs, 19 qualify for incentives, with wages of $20.66 per hour.
"AGP's expansion in Siouxland speaks to the business climate that we have in Iowa," said state Economic Development Director Debi Durham, a former Siouxland Chamber of Commerce president. "This project is not only advantageous for AGP's cooperative members but will also have a positive impact on the region and state alike."
Omaha-based AGP is owned by 174 local and regional cooperatives representing over 250,000 farmers from 12 states throughout the United States and Canada.
SERGEANT BLUFF -- Ag Processing Inc. announced plans Monday for
a major expansion of its western Iowa soybean processing plants in
Sergeant Bl…
An undated aerial photo shows the Ag Processing Inc. complex near Sergeant Bluff. The company is preparing to start a $38 million expansion and construction of a $90 million vegetable oil refining facility.
