Bunge and Chevron broke ground on a new oilseed processing plant in Destrehan, Louisiana, as part of their joint venture to expand renewable fuel feedstock production. The facility, expected to be operational by 2026, will process soybeans and novel crops like winter canola while creating over 150 construction jobs and 30 permanent positions.
- Location and Timeline: New oilseed processing plant in Destrehan, Louisiana, adjacent to existing facility; expected operational in 2026
- Processing Flexibility: Designed to process soybeans, softseeds, and novel winter crops including winter canola and CoverCress
- Job Creation: Project will create more than 150 construction jobs and add 30 permanent facility employees to the existing 100-person workforce
- Strategic Purpose: Increases renewable fuel feedstock production and reduces lifecycle carbon intensity of transportation fuels
- Operational Model: Bunge operates processing plants while Chevron purchases oil for renewable fuel manufacturing and distribution
Bunge and Chevron celebrated the announcement of a final investment decision to build a new oilseed processing plant adjacent to Bunge’s existing processing facility in Destrehan, Louisiana, for their joint venture, Bunge Chevron Ag Renewables LLC, with a groundbreaking event at the site on the Gulf Coast.
The additional investment supports the JV’s development of renewable fuel feedstocks, leveraging Bunge’s expertise in oilseed processing and farmer relationships, and Chevron’s expertise in renewable fuels production and marketing.
Under the joint venture agreement, Bunge operates the JV’s processing plants in Destrehan and Cairo, Illinois, and Chevron has purchase rights for the oil to use as feedstock to manufacture transportation fuels with lower lifecycle carbon intensity. Adding scale and efficiencies to Bunge Chevron Ag Renewables will allow the company to better meet the increased market demand for renewable fuel feedstocks.
“Investments like this one help support farmers and consumers while reducing the lifecycle carbon intensity for transportation fuels,” said Stacey Orlandi, director, manufacturing, Chevron Renewable Energy Group.
The new plant will feature a flexible design, intended to allow the processing of soybeans, as well as softseeds and novel winter oilseed crops, such as winter canola and CoverCress. The processing facility is expected to be operational in 2026.
“At Bunge, we connect farmers to consumers to deliver essential food, feed and fuel to the world,” said Luciano Salvatierra, SVP, renewable fuels, Bunge. “We bring products from where they're grown to where they're processed to where they're consumed, and we embrace our power of connection toward a common goal of global continued sustainable growth.”
Bunge’s Gulf Coast history
Destrehan has been part of Bunge’s supply chain for more than 60 years. In the early 1960s, it opened an export granary in Destrehan to connect domestic grain companies with global markets. In 1967, the company expanded operations in the community by building its first US-based soy processing facility, strategically located on the Mississippi River in the port of South Louisiana. Today, Destrehan continues to be one of Bunge’s busiest ports and a key component of its global footprint.
“This new oil seed processing plant is another step in our long-term strategy to improve our capabilities at scale for the renewable fuels market and to reduce the carbon intensity of our own and our customers value chains,” said Salvatierra.
The expansion is expected to create more than 150 construction jobs. Once the project is commissioned in 2026, Bunge will add 30 facility employees to the more than 100-person staff currently employed at Destrehan.
“The process of taking a plan for a new facility from an idea to design to an approved project takes many, many months,” said Salvatierra. “We appreciate the patience and support local leadership has shown Bunge and Chevron as we came to what we know is the right decision — building a state-of-the-art processing plant in a community that will embrace the opportunity.”
