Adams Industries and Simplot are partnering to build a new fertilizer manufacturing facility in Cheyenne County.
"We're happy to roll into this with Adams. It took longer than what we thought. Tim (Craig) and I started out with ideas. We got engineers involved. They got it all on paper now,"said Robb Fitzke of Simplot.
Planning between the two companies started in 2021. Fitzke said some manufacturing will be done at the facility, but there will also be fertilizer shipped in by rail cars. He said the facility will service customers from Fort Morgan, Colo., to Hershey, Neb.
"We're trying to build a location here to service our growers because as they get bigger they need more efficient access to fertilizer to keep them running. In today's time, you've got planters running at 12 mph through the field, and they're anywhere from 24 to 36 rows," said Fitzke.
In a press release issued Friday, the companies announced the fertilizer facility is expected to be operational by Spring 2024. Adams Warehousing will begin processing fertilizer orders for Simplot at the Adams Fertilizer Facility. Tim Craig, vice-president of Adams Industries, said when fully operational, a customer could load an order of fertilizer in minutes.
The total footprint of the new facility is estimated at five acres. Contracts have been signed and work is expected to begin in the next 30 days, Craig said.
The facility will have Adams personnel and Simplot personnel. Craig estimates Adams will be hiring 30 new positions to support Simplot. Fitzke said Simplot staff will be on site as a quality-control stage.
He said one of the assets is Adams and Simplot are family-owned businesses. Simplot has been in business since the 1920s, according to Fitzke. Simplot is still a family-owned business Fitzke said, as is Adams Industries.
Simplot is based in Boise, Idaho.