Plans have been canceled for building a jet-fuel refinery on land here that state and federal governments have spent nearly $6 million for building a just-completed levee to protect the site from Mississippi River floodwaters.
Velocys had made extensive plans to build the plant on the county-owned Belwood site, but various factors killed the project, said Chandler Russ, executive director of Natchez Inc., the business-recruitment agency for Natchez and Adams County.
“They’ve scaled down and are longer focused on developing the Natchez site,” Russ said of the United Kingdom-based company that’s been envisioning the Belwood property for building what originally was projected to be a billion-dollar facility employing more than 100 people.
However, Russ said other industrial prospects are looking at what he’s called “the best 110-acre site on the Mississippi River” with appealing accommodations such as utilities, rail lines and easy access to a key water transportation artery. Plans were made public in 2017 for Velocys to build at Belwood what it formally called its Bayou Fuels plant to convert wood debris from area timberlands into clean-emission jet fuel. However, various delays occurred that finally became its demise after President Trump was elected a year ago, Russ said.
“Velocys has recently shifted its focus toward advancing its European initiatives and integrating its technology into projects abroad,” he said. “Combined with the evolving capital markets for green energy developments since the election, these factors naturally make projects of this scale more complex.” Velocys was sold in January 2024 to a London-based group of investors to infuse the company with cash and save it from insolvency, according to news accounts.
The key to attracting Velocys was building the just-completed earthen levee to block the Mississippi River out of the flood-prone site. A total of $7 million in recent years was allocated for the construction by state and federal agencies along with funds provided by Velocys.
The company provided $1.2 million to help fund the levee’s construction and another $1 million for Adams County’s coffers, Russ said. While Velocys won’t occupy the Belwood property, the land is ready-made for another industry. “With the levee now complete, we believe we have one of the premier 110-acre industrial sites on the Mississippi River — low-risk, fully protected, and essentially ready for development,” Russ said. “It’s a true plug-and-play site on the river, and that’s something we’ve worked toward for a long time.”
The Mississippi Legislature provided $2 million; the Mississippi Development Authority granted $1.9 million; and the federal Delta Regional Authority gave another $1.9 million. “Thank you to all of our partners along the way. It is our hope that your investment in us pays off huge for Adams County and the state of Mississippi,” Russ said.
After several years of work, the Belwood levee is “basically complete” and built “under budget,” said the engineer overseeing its construction. Meeting Monday with the Adams County Board of Supervisors, engineer Doug Wimberly said final touches include planting grass and a walk-through inspection. The site is the former Belwood country club and golf course the Adams County board purchased in 1998 — the year the country club closed — to accommodate industries.
However, the flood-prone land has remained vacant the past three decades as local officials struggle to find an industrial tenant. KiOR — another biofuel production company — had an option to purchase some of Belwood several years ago. However, that fizzled. The Texas-based company went bankrupt in 2014.
The Belwood site is on River Terminal Road at the outskirts of Natchez near the Adams County river port. During their Monday meeting, county supervisors discussed how a large port customer continues to be disgruntled with services at the county-owned facility. “They’re ready to pull out, and I don’t want to see that happen,” county board President Kevin Wilson said of BASF, which operates a chemical plant across the river in Vidalia that uses the Adams County dock-and-load facility for its international shipments.
BASF wants to lease port-warehouse space and assume its own operations there because of dissatisfaction with county port services, said county Administrator Mitzi Conn.”
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