Pulp and paper manufacturer Virdia will build a $60m biochemical processing plant in Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, which will convert sugarcane bagasse, or sugarcane waste, into industrial sugars and biofuels.
Virdia will use 80,000 tons of Raceland raw sugar mill's bagasse per year, beside which, the new plant will be built.
The project will help the company create about 81 new direct jobs. The Louisiana Economic Development has estimated that about 469 indirect jobs, for a total of 550 new jobs in the region and surrounding areas will be created through this project. About 120 construction jobs are also expected to be generated.
The announcement was made by Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal and and Virdia managing director Otavio Pontes.
Speaking about the project Jindal said, "Virdia represents the success that Louisiana's agriculture industry is experiencing as our economy continues to grow. This project will be a boon for our farmers and refiners in the sugar industry, and it also will create great jobs for our families in Louisiana - where today we have more people working than ever before."
Virdia was recently acquired by Finland-based forestry products company Stora Enso Oyj. The hiring procedure will start in 2015 and the project is expected to be completed by the end of 2016.
Commenting on why the company chose Louisiana for the project Pontes said, "We chose Louisiana due to the accessibility of a nonfood-competing, sustainable raw material - sugar cane bagasse - which will enable us to validate the technology and develop further the applications and possibilities offered by this technology.
"In addition, the support that Raceland Raw Sugar and the Louisiana Economic Development agency is giving in making available a site that offers necessary other resources and infrastructure was also a significant factor. This investment in Louisiana is the logical next step for the industrial validation of the newly acquired extraction and separation technology."
