Calumet, Inc., Great Falls, announced getting a $1.44 billion guaranteed loan from the U.S. Department of EnergyLoan Programs Office. The loan will fund the construction and expansion of the renewable fuels facility owned by Montana Renewables, LLC, a subsidiary of Calumet.

The expansion means that Montana Renewables will be one of the largest Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) producers in the world, enabling an increase in annual production of renewable fuel capacity to approximately 300 million gallons and 330 million gallons of combined aviation fuel and renewable diesel (“RD”).

Some of the production capability is expected to be on line by 2026

The planned expansion includes several key components: a second renewable fuels reactor, debottlenecking of existing units, installation of SAF blending and logistics assets, increased renewable hydrogen production, cogeneration for renewable electricity and steam, and on-site water treatment and recycling capabilities.

“This is essentially the largest agricultural investment in Montana history and will double our purchases of seed oils and tallow from approximately 1.5 billion pounds per year … to 3 billion pounds per year post expansion. This is possible through the strong support and partnership of DOE and follows over two years of detailed due diligence,” said Bruce Fleming, CEO of Montana Renewables. “Our MaxSAF expansion drives regional economic development by creating jobs, supporting the broader agricultural industry, and positioning the State of Montana as a global leader in renewable fuels in a practical and highly economic way with technology that we have developed and derisked here in the United States.”

“This investment is a pivotal catalyst for Calumet,” said Todd Borgmann, CEO of Calumet. “Following our conversion to a C-Corporation, we emphasized the importance of the DOE loan as the next major step in Calumet’s vision, and achieving that milestone is a tremendous accomplishment.”

The MRL expansion is expected to create 450 construction jobs and up to 40 operations jobs. 

Calumet is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana and operates twelve facilities throughout North America.