Citroniq Chemicals has selected Falls City's Mid-America Rail Campus to be one of its state-of-the-art bio-based production mega-sites.
The landmark project is part of the Nebraska BioEconomy Initiative, which aims to advance Nebraska's economic strength, fortify rural communities, and create sustainable, high-paying careers.
Citroniq will transform ethanol produced from Nebraska corn into bio-based polypropylene, reducing the reliance on petroleum-based production while driving additional revenue to Nebraska's farms and rural communities. The plant is expected to be operational in 2029.
"Citroniq's personal engagement in the process demonstrates their dedication to integrating its Falls City presence in a way that enriches lives and strengthens ties with those who live and work in our community. We are excited to partner with Citroniq and establish Falls City as a leader in the Nebraska BioEconomy," said Lucas Froeschl, Executive Director, Falls City EDGE.
"Citroniq is building the world's largest decarbonization platform, capturing over 7 MM tons of CO2 per year, while producing byproduct bio-polypropylene pellets (OrganicPP™) that are a critical component in the decarbonization efforts of the automotive industry and other US manufactured goods. By building multiple plants at full commercial scale, Citroniq can quickly transform the plastics industry in a material way, reducing the carbon footprint of the entire US polypropylene production base by 20%," stated Kelly Knopp, CEO of Citroniq Chemicals.
"Our vision is to create bio-plastics manufacturing hubs in the U.S. Midwest that upgrade Nebraska corn into a wide range of durable plastics goods, while creating high paying manufacturing careers in rural communities. Nebraska is an ideal location for these hubs due to the availability of local ethanol feedstock, advantaged logistics to industrial plastics consumers and high-quality rail infrastructure to support the entire value chain," stated Mel Badheka, President of Citroniq Chemicals.
The Nebraska BioEconomy initiative places an emphasis on fostering sustainable practices, revitalizing rural communities and creating opportunities that leverage Nebraska's people, water, crops and livestock. This project shows Nebraska is the epicenter of the U.S. bio-economy.
