Ethanol production and distribution center eyes Campbellton

An ethanol production and distribution wholesaler plans to set up shop in Campbellton and promises to bring at least 55 jobs to the area if the project goes through.
To help move the plan forward, Jackson County Commissioners on Tuesday agreed to sign a resolution supporting the company’s effort to qualify for tax breaks under Florida’s Qualified Target Industry (QTI) Tax Refund program.
In the resolution, commissioners also asked the state to release the county from a QTI program rule that requires local governments to make a contribution to the tax refund so that the entire tax loss does not fall on the state.
“Destination Bio” is the code name assigned to the company by the Jackson County Development Council as that agency helps the company work its way through the process of possible development.
JCDC Executive Director Bill Stanton said Tuesday he was not yet ready to disclose the name of the company, but said it is based in the southern United States and that it would be selling its product on the open market.
The resolution signed by Jackson County Commissioners Tuesday did yield further information about the proposed operation.
The document states that the company will invest $220 million in its project. That’s almost double what Green Circle Bio Energy put into its Cottondale-area wood pellet plant, Stanton said.
According to the terms stated in the resolution, the average annual wage for hourly employees will be $30,000, which is 21 percent higher than the average pay in Jackson County, according to figures quoted in the resolution. It also states that salaried workers would make an average of $42,000 a year, which is 70 percent higher than the average local pay, according to figures used in the resolution. For the QTI application process, however, the company has stated that it has committed to a total average wage of $28,285, a figure that, according to the paperwork, is still 15 percent above average earnings here.
The code names often employed by JCDC help shield prospects from inquisitive competitors as they work toward a location. They also protect the county from competing communities who might try to court the businesses expressing interest here.
JCDC takes other measures to protect the identity of the company to a certain point in the process. For instance, the real estate transaction connected to the development is being handled initially through JCDC.
The ethanol plant would be located on a 225-acre site now owned by Michael Lister but is under contract for sale to JCDC at a cost of roughly $6,000 an acre.
The contract reserves the land while final arrangements are made to make the development happen, and the company will eventually put up the money for the roughly $1.3 million sale.