Irish agricultural corporation ClonBio has announced their plan for a $500 million investment into a US biorefinery, an undertaking expected to offer employment to over 1,000 people. ClonBio, with annual earnings verging on €400 million, manufactures animal feed, proteins, renewable gas, biofuel, alcohol, and ethanol from grain in Europe and the US. This includes operations at a Co Kildare plant.
In its recent Monday statement, it unveiled plans for a significant boost in its investment in a previously non-operational biorefinery it took over in Jefferson, Wisconsin, back in mid-2022. The anticipated increment of half a billion dollars is predicted to enable the creation of over 1,000 local roles, financially benefit grain farmers, and bolster the state’s economy for many forthcoming years.
This disclosure was one among several others made during a series of business occasions organised by Enterprise Ireland in line with St Patrick’s Day celebrations in America. Several months before the ratification of America’s Inflation Reduction Act by President Joe Biden, ClonBio had agreed to buy a dormant ethanol plant based in Wisconsin.
In the proceeding 18 months, the company has invested $100 million into buying and subsequently renovating this plant, which has grown into Wisconsin’s most prominent grain processing facility. Given the favourable incentives provided by the new legislation, ClonBio has decided to expedite its additional $400 million investment plan to only encompass a few years, rather than the initial projection of a decade.
Simultaneously, within the same enterprise programme led by Enterprise Ireland, Irish sustainability management company Climeaction and sports technology establishment Output Sports have shared their plan to expand their American operations.
CEO of Enterprise Ireland, Leo Clancy, made the statement: “Speeding up their expansion internationally, Irish firms are laying the groundwork for new operations, making hefty investments and taking over foreign markets, which cater to their swelling number of international customers. Adding to Ireland’s economy and enhancing their own standing, these businesses are also generating jobs back home. Irish businesses are indeed responsible for over two-third of Ireland’s employment, and we aim at augmenting this share.”
Also this week, at SXSW Austin, Texas, Enterprise Ireland is set to spotlight Irish companies specialising in film, technology, commercial creativity and future mobility sectors, as part of Ireland House at SXSW, a cross-government agency initiative led by the Department of Foreign Affairs.
In other news, the Irish sports technology company, Sportskey, has just publicised the opening of its new base in the US Midwest, specifically in Chicago. SportsKey specialises in creating software for sports facility management, scheduling and online reservations.
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