Judge approves Sunoco purchase of NY ethanol plant
Wednesday May 20, 2009, 8:27 am EDT

Bankruptcy judge approves Sunoco's $8.5 million of bankrupt upstate NY ethanol plant

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) -- A federal bankruptcy judge is giving her approval to Sunoco Inc.'s offer to buy a bankrupt upstate New York ethanol plant for $8.5 million.

Philadelphia-based Sunoco made the offer at an auction Tuesday for the Northeast Biofuels plant in Fulton, 30 miles north of Syracuse.

Sunoco expects to close the deal by June 15. It will be the petroleum giant's first ethanol plant.

The $200 million ethanol plant never reached full operation because of design flaws that forced frequent shutdowns. It filed for bankruptcy in January.

Sunoco's offer is a fraction of the $172 million in claims lodged by the company's creditors.

Officials say the plant could be back in operation as early as the end of the year. At full capacity, Northeast Biofuels can make 100 million gallons a year.

Source: Associated Press

Engineering News Archive