Enviva Moves Forward on Plans for New Wood Pellet PlantEnviva Moves Forward on Plans for New Wood Pellet Plant

December 3, 2019

4 Min Read
Enviva Moves Forward on Plans for New Wood Pellet Plant
Enviva Biomass is building a new wood pellet plant in Alabama. Image courtesy of Pixabay

The world’s biggest industrial wood pellet manufacturer, Enviva Biomass, said Monday that it has received a permit from the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) enabling the firm to start construction work on a new wood pellet plant at the Port of Epes Industrial Park in Epes, AL.

Once operational, the facility will initially produce 700,000 mt/yr of wood pellets from a mixture of softwood and mill residuals purchased within a 75-mile radius of the plant. The company said the site will eventually reach a full capacity of 1.1 million mt/yr. Pellets produced a the Epes plant will transported by barge on the Tennessee-Tombigbee River to an Enviva deep water terminal in Pascagoula, MS. The products will be exported to Europe and Asia. 

“The decision by [ADEM] is not just about a new wood pellet plant in Sumter County, because Enviva is more than that. As I have said before, we are privileged to have been invited by the people of Alabama to invest in a remarkable community like Epes,” the firm’s chairman and chief executive officer John Keppler said in a company press release. 

Enviva said it is investing $175 million in the project. Construction on the site will start in early 2020 and reach completion within 15 to 18 months. 85 new full-time jobs will be created as a result of the plant’s opening, as well as an estimated 180 positions in logging, transportation, and local services. 

“The rich fiber basket and supply in Alabama, along with favorable transport logistics and a great local workforce, are what makes this project sustainable and attractive,” the Enviva release said. 

Plans for the new Epes facility were first announced by the company this October. In August, Enviva said it is investing $60 million to build its port terminal in the Port of Pascagoula in Florida. The facility will be capable of handling 3 million mt/yr of wood pellets and supporting Panamax-sized ships. 

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