River Valley Energy, a subsidiary of the Beaver Dam-based United Cooperative, has agreed to purchase the former VeraSun ethanol plant in Dyersville, Iowa.
The facility was closed last fall after VeraSun Energy's bankruptcy took place nearly a year ago.
According to AgStar Financial Services, the lending group helping to finance the deal, the purchase contract has been signed and the transfer of ownership is expected to take place by September 1. River Valley Energy plans to have the plant fully operational within 30 days of the closing date.
"We are very excited to acquire the Dyersville facility," said River Valley Energy CEO David Cramer. "We look forward to a long and prosperous relationship with the community of Dyersville, local producers, area grain elevators, and of course, AgStar."
Cramer says the facility has a production capacity of 100 million gallons per year, and is permitted to produce up to 120 million gallons. The company also plans to convert approximately 39 million bushels of corn into ethanol per year.
VeraSun filed for bankruptcy in October and closed the Dyersville facility in November.
Meanwhile, United Cooperative is also the managing member of United Ethanol, LLC of Milton, and is an active investor in Carbon Green BioEnergy in Woodbury, Michigan.
This new agreement represents AgStar's second plant sale in a week. Guardian Energy signed a deal to purchase the Janesville, Minnesota plant.
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