NORFOLK, NEB. — Norfolk Crush, LLC has unveiled plans to invest $375 million to build a new soybean crushing plant in Madison County near Norfolk.

Groundbreaking on the project is slated for later this spring, and, once operational, the plant is expected to crush 38.5 million bus of soybeans per year, or 110,000 bus per day. Norfolk Crush will produce 847,000 tons of soybean meal per year (2,420 tons per day) for livestock feed markets, 450 million lbs of crude soybean oil per year (1.28 million lbs per day), and 77,000 tons of pelleted soybean hulls per year (220 tons per day). The soymeal and soy hulls (which contain highly digestible fiber) will be used in livestock feed rations, the company said.

Meanwhile, soybean oil from Norfolk Crush can be used for a variety of applications, including the rapidly expanding renewable diesel industry.

“This will be the first modern soybean processing facility to begin operations in Nebraska,” said Nick Bowdish, president and chief executive officer of N Bowdish Company LLC. In addition to spearheading the development of Norfolk Crush, Bowdish is helping lead the development of Platinum Crush, LLC, which last fall announced plans to build a similar size soybean crushing plant in Buena Vista County near Alta, Iowa.

While the new plant in Nebraska is pending state and local approvals, Norfolk Crush said it has selected Fagen, Inc. to be the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for the plant.

“Fagen, Inc. is excited to work with Nick Bowdish on another fantastic project,” said Chris Howard, president and CEO of Fagen, Inc. “The Norfolk area is a great location for a soybean crush facility, which will make a lasting, positive impact on the region.”

Mr. Howard said Fagen began engineering efforts in October 2021 and has secured the major equipment required to meet the planned mobilization date and to bring the plant operational in 2024.

The Nebraska Central Railroad Co. and Union Pacific Railroad will serve Norfolk Crush.

“Union Pacific is proud to partner with Norfolk Crush to serve Nebraska’s ag community with service from the new soybean crush facility,” said Jason Hess, vice president of marketing and sales bulk at UP. “Our network provides access to domestic and export markets, giving Norfolk Crush flexibility to compete globally.”

Norfolk Crush’s plans join a growing list of soybean crushing plant projects that have been announced over the past 12 months. In December 2021, CGB Enterprises, Inc. and Minnesota Soybean Processors announced they are forming a joint venture for the construction of a soybean processing plant near Casselton, ND, that is expected to crush 42.5 million bus of soybeans in the first year.  Earlier, ADM said it would build North Dakota’s first-ever dedicated soybean crushing plant and refinery in Spiritwood, North Dakota, US. The approximately $350 million crush and refining complex will feature state-of-the-art automation technology and have the capacity to process 150,000 bus of soybeans per day.