Aug 9 2005
Cargill has announced its intention to invest in a new 200,000 tonnes biodiesel facility in Mainz in Germany. The facility will complement Cargill’s existing oilseed crushing and refining operations in the region and is expected to commence production in Q3 2006.
“The new facility will enable us to meet the increasing demand from our customers for biofuels,” said Jack van den Hoek, General Manager, Biodiesel and Biomass, Cargill Europe. “Mainz is ideally situated for the production and supply of biodiesel – both in terms of its geographical location and in the availability of raw materials such as rapeseed oil and other vegetable oils which can be supplied via the Rhine.”
In January of this year, Cargill announced that the company’s oilseed crushing capacity in Germany is being extended. This extension will enable Cargill to maintain vegetable oil supplies to food customers while meeting the increasing demand for vegetable oils for biodiesel. The extension will result in an increased capacity of around 50% across the Salzgitter, Mainz and Riesa sites.
Cargill already has a number of investments and joint ventures for biodiesel and bioethanol production in the United States, Poland and Germany including a biodiesel joint venture with Agravis Raiffeisen AG in Wittenberge, Germany.
http://www.cargill.com