Innovation Fuels Buys Milwaukee Terminal Facility
Innovation Fuels, the New York-based renewable fuel company that manufactures, markets, and distributes biodiesel fuel, on Jan. 12 announced it has closed on the purchase of a 310,000-barrel capacity terminal located on 10 acres in the Port of Milwaukee.
This facility will be used for the sale and distribution of biodiesel and other renewable fuels into and out of the Midwest.
The project was financed by Securant Bank & Trust, a commercial bank based in Milwaukee. "We feel very strongly about the renewable fuels sector and understand the strategic importance for Innovation Fuels to establish a solid base here in the Midwest and Milwaukee in particular," stated Spencer J. Mather, vice president of Securant Bank & Trust.
The terminal, originally built as Shell Oil's Milwaukee headquarters in the 1950s, includes a 20,000-square-foot warehouse, executive offices, and a garage. The site features existing truck and rail loading infrastructure, with excellent highway access and is served by two Class I railways, the Union Pacific Railroad and the Canadian Pacific Railroad. In addition, the Port of Milwaukee has international shipping access via the St. Lawrence Seaway and can receive river barge cargo via the Mississippi. The facility also has an idled connection to the Westshore petroleum pipeline, which could be used to bring in diesel and gasoline to the terminal for blending with renewable fuels, such as biodiesel and ethanol.
"This acquisition provides Innovation Fuels with direct, deep-water access to the lucrative Great Lakes and Northeast markets as well as to international ports making the Port of Milwaukee property one of the keys to our global strategy," commented John Fox, chief executive officer for Innovation Fuels. "We can now easily transport finished product from Midwestern biofuels producers to virtually anywhere on the East Coast of the United States as well as to our international customers."