Chippewa County, Wisconsin Issued BDO Zone 'A' Rating for Corn Stover
Chippewa County, Wisconsin Issued BDO Zone 'A' Rating for Corn Stover
July 23, 2024 – (Chippewa Falls, WI) The Chippewa Economic Development Corporation (CEDC) and Ecostrat are pleased to announce the issue of an investment grade BDO Zone ‘A’ Rating for 380,000 bone dry tons per year of Corn Stover for the Chippewa County BDO Zone.
The BDO Zone Initiative certifies regional readiness for bio-based manufacturing, creates global connections with project developers, and ignites an influx of clean energy opportunities. The Chippewa County BDO Zone is the first ‘A’ rating in the State of Wisconsin and extends a 75-mile drive distance from Chippewa Falls, WI. The BDO Zone ‘A’ rating denotes high prospective viability of feedstock supply chain and infrastructure, and low expectations of default risk in the Zone.
“The ‘A’ rating for Chippewa County highlights our community’s exceptional potential to lead globally in the bioeconomy,” stated Charlie Walker, President/CEO of the Chippewa Economic Development Corporation (CEDC). “We look forward to collaborating with bioenergy, biochemical, and bioproduct companies to diversify and expand markets for our agricultural resources. Without Ecostrat’s expertise and the USDA’s support through the Rural Business Development Grant (RBDG), the establishment of Wisconsin’s ‘A’ rating BDO Zone would not have been possible- we are grateful for their partnership in advancing this rural economic development initiative.”
The Chippewa region features a steady increase in grain crops, indicating a positive outlook for corn stover availability and lacks established competition for corn stover within a 150-mile radius of Chippewa Falls, WI. The Chippewa County BDO Zone has trucking access to North America’s largest inland freshwater port, a rail line adjacent to the several industrial sites, easy connections to Interstate 94, and a well-maintained local road network that provides affordable global market connections.
Jordan Solomon, Chairman of the BDO Zone Initiative, stated, “As Wisconsin’s first ‘A’ rating, Chippewa County is ideally positioned to support biobased companies seeking prime locations for biomass projects. The BDO Zone highlights their commitment to strategically utilizing corn stover biomass, paving the way for new, sustainable, low-carbon markets in the region.” Ecostrat is the North American leader in biomass due diligence for biofuels, renewable chemicals, biogas, and bio-product project development and finance.
To see the full BDO Zone Rating for Chippewa County, WI, please click here, or visit www.bdozone.org.
BDO Zone Project Development Support:
About Chippewa Economic Development Corporation (CEDC)
Chippewa Economic Development Corporation (CEDC) is the pioneering business services consultant in Chippewa County, Wisconsin. CEDC offers a helping hand to hundreds of budding regional entrepreneurs and businesses to reach their fullest potential after successfully evolving from their startup stage. The tremendous effort exercised by the organization to attract, retain, and expand local businesses has created a vibrant and thriving startup ecosystem in the locality. CEDC also provides undivided guidance and empowerment to entrepreneurs throughout the Chippewa Valley. For more information, visit www.chippewa-wi.com or contact ccedc@chippewa-wi.com.
About The BDO Zone Initiative
The Biofuel Development Opportunity (BDO) Zone Initiative certifies ‘regional readiness’ for bio-manufacturing, creates global connections and ignites an influx of new energy opportunities for farmers, economic developers, and rural businesses. A BDO Zone rating is an internationally recognized, standards-based technical risk assessment of a region’s feedstock, supply chain, and infrastructure risk with respect to the development potential for new biofuel plants. BDO Zone ratings are site location bullseyes for bio-project development. Investment grade ratings are force-multipliers for attracting new manufacturing plants to the areas where they are most likely to succeed, drive investment and create jobs.
For more information on the BDO Zone Initiative, contact info@bdozone.org. To view all BDO Zone ratings, visit www.bdozone.org. Check out the BDO Zone LinkedIn page for news and updates.
Ecostrat is the North American leader in biomass due diligence for biofuels, renewable chemicals, biogas, and bio-product project development and finance. Jordan Solomon is Chairman of the BDO Zone Initiative and President of Ecostrat (www.ecostrat.com). He can be reached at jordan.solomon@ecostrat.com.
Originally published at bdozone.org.