Construction begins on $355.7M Paraná crushing facility

In Brazil, Paraná Governor Carlos Massa Ratinho Junior took part last in Lapa, in the Curitiba Metropolitan Area, in the laying of the foundation stone for Grupo Potencial’s soybean crushing plant. The first phase of the work will receive R$1.7 billion in investments to expand biodiesel production, with the expectation of generating around 250 direct jobs and up to 3 thousand indirect ones. Vice President Geraldo Alckmin also accompanied the ceremony.

The soybean industrialization market is the new business front of Grupo Potencial, which operates in the fuel, energy and transport sector and is one of the main biodiesel producers in the country. The forecast is that the new plant will be completed in 18 months from the start of construction, which could take up to 24 months if the deadline for commercial negotiations is considered.

The soy crusher will be built at Grupo Potencial’s Industrial Complex, in Lapa, next to the company’s biodiesel plant, which is the largest in Brazil and the third largest in the world. The land leveling process has already started and the construction of the plant is expected to begin in the coming months.

This is the biggest investment in the coming years for the group, which is projected to become one of the world leaders in the crushing sector. The plant will have the capacity to process about 3,500 tons of soybeans per day, or 1.15 million tons per year from 2025.

Two silos will be built to store soybeans, with a capacity of 150,000 tons each, and another silo, with a capacity of 100,000 tons, to store bran, one of the residues from oil extraction, which can be used in the production of feed and other products and will be sold in the domestic and foreign markets.

The project also foresees the construction of a railway terminal to connect the industrial plant with the railway line that goes to the Port of Paranaguá.