New ethanol plant planned for Kentucky

US-based Patriot Bioenergy (PB) has announced plans for the construction of an ethanol plant in Whitley County, Kentucky.

PB is already growing beet feedstock in Whitley and Adair counties as a base for its ethanol production, moving away from corn which is no longer subsidised by the US government.

‘What we have been doing over the last eighteen months is looking at the viability of using the beet in Kentucky as a dedicated feedstock for fuel production,’ says Patriot CEO Roger Ford. ‘The sugar content of beets would be higher than corn, which means you don't have to grow as many acres of it.’

Whitley County officials are behind the project especially as the announcement brings with it the promise of 100 new jobs to the area.