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Cook County featured in Georgia Trend magazine

When it comes to location, Cook County has it in spades, with all the advantages of straddling the bustling Interstate 75 as it nears the Florida state line. And the longer Lisa Collins, executive director of the Cook County Economic Development Commission, is on the job, the more focus she’s able to place on developing those prime areas.

Case in point is this summer’s announcement that Houston-based Renewable Biomass Group will construct a $95-million wood pellet facility in Adel, initially creating 60 new jobs. Founder and CEO Craig Whitlock says its 18-month plan to be fully operational begins with breaking ground later this year. The facility will produce biomass pellets for export to Europe and Asia, where electrical utilities will use the pellets to stoke retrofitted coal-fired power plants or in combination with coal for co-firing.

The 170-acre property is adjacent to I-75, and the company will use Norfolk Southern Railway to transport product to the Port of Savannah for overseas shipment to places such as Antwerp and Japan, says Whitlock, adding that use of the Port of Brunswick in addition to Savannah has potential for the future. The company projects a volume of 450,000 metric tons of finished product per year, he says.

Whitlock says he has a deep appreciation for the leaders of Cook County that he’s worked with during the three years to bring the greenfield biomass project to fruition. It’s the company’s first foray into Georgia, which it chose after exploring potential in several other states.

“When we landed in Georgia and saw how robust it is and the proximity to a port that is moving significant volumes of pellets already and then found Adel, it stood out because of the people there,” he says.

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