WATSONVILLE — A biofuel manufacturing plant that closed its doors two years ago has reopened under new ownership.
Agron Bioenergy will produce biodiesel, a fuel made from animal and farm waste products.
The company held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday, an event attended by such luminaries as Watsonville City Council members Felipe Hernandez, Rebecca Garcia and Jimmy Dutra. A representative from the office of Assemblywoman Ana Caballero also attended.
Agron Bioenergy is owned by Wall Lake, Iowa-based Western Iowa Energy, LLC, which produces some 45 million gallons of biodiesel annually.
Biodiesel can be made from virtually any fat or vegetable oil. This includes soybean oil, recycled cooking oil and animal fats left over from meat production.
Proponents say that the fuel is clean-burning and offers increased efficiency during combustion and better lubrication for engines.
It also helps to take a bite out of the massive amount of petroleum used globally every day, and effectively reduces the amount of greenhouse gasses pumped into the air.
California’s Air Resources Board has said that biodiesel reduces greenhouse gases by at least 50 percent, and as much as 81 percent compared to petroleum. This gives biodiesel some of the best carbon scores among all liquid fuels.
“It cleans up the environment, and that’s huge,” said Agron Board of Directors Vice Chair Denny Mauser. “It makes us more energy independent. We shouldn’t have to go to the Middle East to get our fuel.”
The company is planning to bring in all its feedstock by rail. When in full production, company officials anticipate brining in about 15 million gallons a year of feedstock, between 600-750 cars annually.
The plant originally opened in 2012 by Northstar Biofuels. That company closed in 2016. Western Iowa Energy, LLC purchased it last year.
Hernandez called the plant “a step in the right direction,” and said he hopes to see local governments using the fuel.
“I’d like to see the spread of biodiesel throughout the region,” he said.
The Watsonville plant will produce an estimated 15 million gallons of biodiesel per year, all of which will stay in California, Mauser said.
The company has hired eight people, and has plans add another 10.
For information, visit WesternIowaEnergy.com.
