Biodiesel plant boost for Waikato
Waikato Times Press Release - 17 January 2007
A $40 million biodiesel plant planned for Waharoa could create up to 20 new jobs in the area.
Auckland-based company Biodiesel Oils NZ Ltd (office in e-centre Limited, Massey University, Albany) has bought 2.6ha of land in Waharoa, northwest of Matamata, and, pending resource consent, hopes to have the plant running by the end of the year.
The announcement is the third this week that could signal more job opportunities for the Waikato. Caravan builder C I Munro is expanding in a shift to Hamilton, and Australian charter airline Ozjet is also considering a move to the city.
Biodiesel Oils NZ managing director Tom McNicholl said its new plant would have the capacity to create 60 million litres of biodiesel a year.
"It would satisfy the whole demand for the North Island," he said.
Biodiesel produced at Waharoa could also be exported to Australia and Europe.
The company was this week beginning the process of applying for resource consent for the plant, which would be made up of several buildings, including laboratories, and processing and storage areas.
It planned to produce biodiesel using tallow as its raw material, and Mr McNicholl said Waharoa appealed because of its closeness to meatworks, where tallow could be sourced, and the Port of Tauranga.
About 120,000 tonnes of tallow were exported from the North Island each year and the company hoped to purchase as much of that as possible.
Mr McNicholl said setting up the plant would cost $40 million.
After that, the company planned to build a second plant of a similar size somewhere in the South Island.
He said the company anticipated selling biodiesel to New Zealand's major oil companies.
The Government has been developing biofuels sales requirements for the sale and use of biofuel blends in New Zealand. Under such requirements, oil companies would have to sell a minimum percentage of biofuels as part of transport fuels.
Mr McNicholl said the company was confident of getting resource consent because of the minimal waste and air emissions produced by the plant.
Matamata-Piako mayor Hugh Vercoe said the biodiesel plant would be good for Waharoa, which he said was experiencing a surge in development. "It's got a great future, especially with the developments people are currently talking to council about."
Waharoa was great for industrial development because it was near a railway line and state highway, and had access to natural gas.
Located at the e-centre Limited:
Lynton Bridger
General Manager
Marketing/Operations
P O Box 259285
Greenmount
Auckland
Mobile: 027 428-4043
PH: 09 274-9469
Fax: 09 273-7147
lyn@biodiesel-oils.co.nz
