Houston-based Arbor Renewable Gas LLC is evaluating West Baton Rouge Parish for a planned $800 million manufacturing and distribution facility employing carbon capture and sequestration emissions-reduction technology, according to Louisiana Economic Development.
Arbor Renewable Gas produces renewable gasoline and green hydrogen from wood waste and forest residue. Operating as Magnolia Renewable Fuels LLC, the new facility would produce renewable gasoline from wood waste biomass sourced from Louisiana and Mississippi timber operations.
The project would create 32 new direct jobs with average annual salaries of $99,000, plus benefits. The company also estimates development of the facility would generate up to 880 construction jobs at its peak.
The company would locate its greenfield facility at the Port Allen Rail Terminal, which offers railroad and highway access and proximity to timber operations. Magnolia plans to source southern yellow pine pre-commercial thinnings, a byproduct of routine forest management operations. Arbor Gas recently announced a similar project in Beaumont, Texas.
Initial plans call for the installation of two product trains, with the capacity for future expansions.
“The Baton Rouge Area is rising up as the global epicenter for renewable and transitional energy investments,” says Adam Knapp, Baton Rouge Area Chamber president and CEO, in a prepared statement. “Since 2020, the Capital Region has seen over $18.5 billion in announced or considered investments. The industrial sector is moving toward net zero carbon emissions in manufacturing.”
To secure the Arbor Gas project, the state offered the company an incentive package that includes the services of LED FastStart. The company is also expected to utilize the state’s Quality Jobs and Industrial Tax Exemption programs.
