Dec. 28—GRAND FORKS — Epitome Energy has decided to not build in Minnesota, but farmers in the state will still benefit from its soybean crush plant once it is built across the border in Grand Forks, some Minnesota agricultural leaders are saying.

Epitome Energy, a Red Wing, Minnesota-based agribusiness, announced on

Monday, Dec. 5 that it plans to build a $400 million soybean crush plant

in Grand Forks. Originally, the

plant was planned for Crookston, Minnesota,

but uncertainty in the Minnesota permitting process led the company to explore other options, said CEO Dennis Egan.

When operational, the plant is expected to crush 42 million bushels of soybeans per year. Epitome Energy estimates its plant could increase the basis on soybeans for local farmers by 20 to 25 cents per bushel.

"Ultimately, I hope that it gets built because it'll still (provide) the farmers in the area a market to crush their soybeans," said Thom Petersen, commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. "We'll miss out on the tax benefits and advantages of that."

Petersen said the MDA put time and money into drawing the plant into northwest Minnesota because of the opportunity it presented for soybean farmers in the region. A $1 million grant and a $35,000 planning grant were made available for the company by the MDA. The company used only a fraction of each.

In Crookston, the Epitome plant was planned for the same area as the

Ag Innovation Campus,

which will also have a small soybean crush plant. The state invested more than $5 million into that campus, said Petersen, which is nearing completion.

"As the Department of Agriculture, we went above and beyond to make different things available to try to get this built in Minnesota," said Petersen.

While the main product produced at the plant is expected to be

soybean oil used in the biofuel

or food industry, the plant will also produce soybean meal as a byproduct.

For livestock producers, the soybean meal produced at the Epitome plant could mean more meal is readily available in the region, said Minnesota District 1A Rep. John Burkel, R-Badger. Burkel, a fourth-generation turkey farmer, said most soybean meal used to feed livestock is transported across the state from processing plants in southern Minnesota cities like Dawson and Mankato.

"Having a soybean meal processing plant locally could really be a benefit to the livestock industry in our area, but what's frustrating about it is we've got a situation where a plant that would have been built in Crookston is now being built in Grand Forks, and the jobs that go with it are going to stay there," he said.

Beyond the jobs and tax base the plant would have added to Crookston and Polk County, the plant moving 30 miles west will bring other economic activity with it, said Burkel.

"The truck driver dumping the soybeans isn't going to stop in Crookston at the truck stop to fuel, he's going to stop in Grand Forks," said Burkel.

In the 2023 legislative session, Burkel will serve on the Agriculture Finance and Policy Committee and Environment and Natural Resources Finance and Policy Committee. He says he would like to see legislative pressure applied to permitting agencies like the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and DNR to speed permitting processes and lessen what he sees as "regulatory overreach" by government agencies.

According to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, Epitome Energy's air permit was

expected to be issued in February 2023

so construction on the plant could begin in the spring. Egan told the Herald

he was not aware of that timeline.

Petersen says the permitting process in Minnesota has room for improvement, but other conditions can affect how long it takes for a permit to be issued.

"This is a new plant, new company," said Petersen. "This isn't like Cargill coming to Crookston and building a plant — this is a new startup entity building a very large plant with lots of different intricacies."

In North Dakota, Egan hopes to have an air permit by August 2023.