Renewable Energy Group Inc. (REG), Ames, Iowa, has entered a long-term lease agreement with International-Matex Tank Terminals LLC (IMTT) under which IMTT will build out storage and logistics infrastructure at its bulk-liquid storage and marine terminal in Geismar, La., to support REG subsidiary REG Geismar LLC’s expansion of its 90-million gal/year renewables diesel plant, also in Geismar (OGJ Online, Oct. 6, 2020).
Alongside providing bulk-liquid storage, handling, dock usage, and other transshipment services to REG Geismar, IMTT also has agreed to permit, build, and own six new bulk liquid storage tanks for biodiesel, renewable diesel, and certain plant feedstocks, as well as related dock and loading infrastructure, all of which will accommodate the plant’s project to expand aggregate production of finished renewable diesel products by 250 million gal/year, IMTT said.
The terminal expansion also will include construction of two pipeline enabling connectivity to the Geismar renewable fuels plant, according to the service provider.
Scheduled to be completed and ready for service 24 months from execution of the Aug. 3 agreement, IMTT said its expansion plan will nearly double current storage capacity of the terminal.
While IMTT did not disclose further details regarding the project, REG said in its recently released second-quarter earnings report that it expects to spend about $22 million annually on the 15-year storage agreement, which is slated to automatically renew for subsequent terms of 10 years.
The storage and logistics agreement follows REG’s Aug. 4 confirmation that its board has approved moving forward with construction of Geismar’s planned production capacity expansion, as well as with additional works to enhance the plant’s operational and logistics capabilities not included in the original project plan.
Previously estimated to require a minimum $825-million capital investment, REG in early August estimated overall cost of its revised Geismar project at about $950 million.
With all required funding and permits to proceed now secured, REG said the Geismar improvement and expansion project—which will increase the plant’s overall production capacity to 340 million gal/year—is scheduled to reach mechanical completion in 2023, with full commissioning of the expanded plant to follow in 2024.
