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CF Industries could rule over a $4 billion low-carbon ammonia kingdom in Louisiana in the next decade or so.

The Illinois-based fertilizer manufacturer is considering building another $2 billion “blue” ammonia production facility in Ascension Parish, Louisiana Economic Development announced Thursday.

This plant, which is being co-developed by CF Industries and South Korea steelmaker POSCO Holdings, would be built at CF Industries’ proposed Blue Point Complex on the west bank of the Mississippi River in Ascension Parish. It’s the same site of another proposed $2 billion “blue” ammonia plant CF Industries is co-developing with Mitsui & Co. of Japan. LOTTE Chemical Corp. is also helping with that project.

Industrial projects are considered “green” when they use renewable energy and “blue” when they add carbon capture to mitigate carbon dioxide emissions.

If this new ammonia plant moves forward, it would create 50 direct new jobs with average annual salaries of more than $106,000 as well as 177 new indirect jobs, according to an LED news release. Louisiana offered CF Industries a $3 million grant for infrastructure costs, and the company is expected to apply for state tax incentives for the project.

CF Industries and POSCO Holdings are exploring whether they can use carbon capture and autothermal reforming, or ATR, ammonia production at the proposed facility. The production process should sequester up to 90% of the plant’s carbon dioxide emissions, LED said. CF Industries officials said it’s too early to estimate the facility’s annual emissions total.

Both ammonia plants are undergoing front-end engineering design, or FEED, studies. The study for the POSCO project should be completed in the second half of 2024, and a final investment decision should follow shortly thereafter, LED said Thursday.

Meanwhile, the FEED study on the Mitsui joint venture is still underway, and a final investment decision on that project is expected later this year. Each project should take about four years to build once the final decisions are reached.

The newest announcement is yet another milestone in Louisiana’s evolution toward low-carbon ammonia production, particularly from CF Industries, whose Donaldsonville complex is the world’s largest ammonia manufacturer and the state’s largest greenhouse gas emitter at roughly 10 million tons per year, according to LSU’s most recent greenhouse gas inventory.

“We believe that low-carbon ammonia will play a critical role in accelerating the world’s transition to clean energy, and this proposed new project confirms the global impact we can have in decarbonizing hard-to-abate industries,” CF Industries President and CEO Tony Will said in a statement.

The Donaldsonville complex is also undertaking a $100 million “green” ammonia production project and a $200 million carbon capture investment to sequester about one-fifth of the plant’s annual carbon dioxide emissions.

CF Industries isn’t the only firm looking at Ascension Parish for low-carbon ammonia.

Clean Hydrogen Works, a Texas-based joint venture, is considering the parish for a $7.5 billion “blue” ammonia plant. Air Products’ $4.5 billion project in Ascension Parish is expected to create “blue” hydrogen that can be used to make “blue” ammonia.

The investments aren’t limited to the Baton Rouge area. In the New Orleans region, St. Charles Clean Fuels is eyeing a $4.6 billion “blue” ammonia production plant in St. Charles Parish. Canadian firm AmmPower is studying a potential $1 billion “green” ammonia facility at the Port of South Louisiana.

G2 Net-Zero LLC, which originally planned a liquefied natural gas plant in Cameron Parish, now says it wants to build a “blue” ammonia plant in southwest Louisiana, though the firm has yet to divulge details on that project.

For the last few years, state officials have touted the economic and environmental benefits of luring hydrogen and ammonia projects for cleaner production of both industrial chemicals.

“We are thrilled that CF Industries and POSCO are considering this opportunity here,” Kate MacArthur, president and CEO of Ascension Economic Development Corporation, said in a statement. “This project not only promises economic growth but also underscores our dedication to preserving our environment for generations to come.”

More and more industrial companies are looking to ammonia as a combustible fuel source to lower their greenhouse gas footprints, said Greg Upton, interim executive director of LSU’s Center for Energy Studies. Historically, ammonia demand has been geared toward fertilizer production.

In addition, generous tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act could continue to fuel further industrial interest in “blue” and “green” ammonia, Upton said.

“Companies will tell you, though, that they have these aggressive decarbonization commitments and they’re definitely pursuing those, but a lot of these projects just wouldn’t be possible if it wasn’t for these tax credits on top of those decarbonization commitments,” he said.

The new low-carbon ammonia plants, though, will still add to global carbon dioxide totals because they’re not sequestering all of their emissions, said Courtney Bernhardt, director of research at the Environmental Integrity Project, a Washington-based environmental justice nonprofit.

“It’s really an increase in emissions overall, not a decrease or getting them anywhere closer to net zero,” she said.

In addition, ammonia plants are troublesome sources of toxic pollution and can frequently have “highly toxic” accidental releases, Bernhardt said.

“People living near these things are still going to feel the impact of day-to-day operations regardless of whether or not it’s ‘clean,’” she said.

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The Donaldsonville Downtown Development District has earned its National Main Street Accreditation once again.

The DDD Main Street Program has been designated as an accredited program in 2023 for meeting rigorous performance standards, according to a news release from the city's director of community and economic development, Lee Melancon.

Every year, Main Street America and its partners announce the list of accredited programs to recognize their commitment to preservation-based economic development and community revitalization, he said.

“We are extremely proud to recognize this year’s nationally accredited Main Street America programs that have worked tirelessly to advance economic vitality and quality of life in their downtowns and commercial districts,” Patrice Frey, president and CEO of Main Street America, said in the announcement. “During another incredibly challenging year, these programs demonstrated the power of the Main Street movement to respond to the needs of their communities. I am inspired by their steadfast leadership and innovative solutions to drive essential local recovery efforts, support small businesses, and nurture vibrant downtown districts.”

The Donaldsonville DDD’s performance is annually evaluated by Louisiana Main Street, which works in partnership with Main Street America to identify the local programs that meet 10 national performance standards, according to the release. Evaluation criteria determines the communities that are building meaningful and sustainable revitalization programs and include standards such as fostering strong public-private partnerships, documenting programmatic progress and actively preserving historic buildings.

“The Donaldsonville Downtown Development District / Donaldsonville Main Street Program has consistently earned this prestigious designation for over 15 years for the work they do to promote the City of Donaldsonville and is visible by the re-investment and revitalization taking place downtown,” Mayor Leroy Sullivan said.

The DDD operates in the Mayor’s Office of Community Economic Development and is staffed by volunteer commissioners and the city’s director of community and economic development.

The 2023-2024 DDDD volunteer commissioners are led by chair Juanita Pearley, who serves as executive director of the Donaldsonville Area Chamber of Commerce, president of the Donaldsonville Rotary, board chair of the MBECA Small Business Center and is a resident of the city. Other members of the commission include vice chair Oliver Joseph, secretary/treasurer Michele Ashby, and commissioners-at-large, Brandon Katz, Scott Charleville, Natalie Noel and Gerard Sanchez.

“We are extremely proud of the accomplishments of our program and look forward to continuing to build on our successes in 2023,” Pearley said. “We have worked tirelessly to re-think the role of the commission and Main Street Program as event planners and are focusing much more heavily on attracting developers and investors to our community as well as encouraging our local owners to re-invest into the city."

“Since 2015, developers have been awarded nearly one million dollars in grant funds through national, regional, and statewide grant programs to redevelop historic and abandoned buildings,” Melancon said. “Additionally, local commercial business owners have earned over 40 million dollars in tax credit programs; one of the largest users of tax credit programs in Louisiana for our size."

He pointed out several developments including the restored and fully operational Lemann Art Lofts, the Noel Family Distillery, Gaston’s BBQ & Beer, Dr. Rhedy’s office (Casso building), Guarisco building (formerly Giambrone barbershop and salon), Roux Physical Therapy (Shaheen’s store), The Cup & Saucer and Mid City Carwash.

Other projects include the Teche Transfer Company (previously Treasure House / Capitol Restaurant), the Ascension Parish Library, Ferris building, Sagona store, the United Methodist Church, the Mistretta store, La Cocina Restaurant (former Cabahanosse), the Matassa store, the Leboeuf store and original Library renovation, Matassa (Sears store), and the Crescent Park playground renovation. Combined with numerous residential historic nonprofit preservation projects, a total of nearly $20 million have been invested, he said.

“If you don’t see development taking place, you’re simply not looking,” Melancon said.

The district is also home to the newly renovated Lemann Memorial Center and is awaiting restoration of the "La La" Regira baseball field, a project led by the city under the mayor and city council.

“We have more to do, but we are extremely enthusiastic about the future. We appreciate the partnership with the mayor, the city leadership, the Lt. Gov. Office of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, Ray Scriber and Amanda Lanata of Louisiana Main Street, the Ascension Parish Tourism Commission, the Donaldsonville Historic District Commission, local investors, realtors, and all the sponsors who make the Downtown Development District and all of the festivals it hosts a huge successful,” he said.

Gonzales Weekly Citizen and Donaldsonville Chief, part of the USA Today Network of Louisiana, cover Ascension Parish and the greater Baton Rouge area. Follow at facebook.com/WeeklyCitizen and facebook.com/DonaldsonvilleChief.

What started with a hobby and a homemade still has grown into a family-run business — and is bringing a Louisiana tequila to shelves across the state.

NOËL Family Distillery, a Donaldsonville distillery founded by former University of Louisiana at Lafayette basketball player Natalie Noel and her dad, Chip Noel, is one of the newest local distillers to pop up in Louisiana and is the first to offer its own brand of tequila. While the tequila is made in Jalisco, Mexico — a requirement to bear the name “tequila” — the family has put a Louisiana twist on the spirit.

Natalie and Chip’s journey to open their own distillery wasn’t easy, with the process stretching for about six years. Now, months after their official grand opening, the duo is glad they stuck it out.

“We always felt like we were too far gone to turn back,” Natalie said. “Probably, we could have. But I’m so glad we didn’t.”

From the sugarcane fields to the still

The distillery is a true family affair. Natalie serves as the distillery’s chief executive officer, while Chip is the master distiller. Other family members also are involved in different steps of the process, such as putting the labels on the bottles.

Natalie got her bachelor’s degree in business at UL Lafayette, where she also played for the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns Women’s Basketball team during the 2002 season. After graduating at UL Lafayette, she got her Master of Business Administration at LSU. While at LSU, she began working with a footwear company and a health brand alongside an LSU professor.

The family has close ties to the sugarcane fields that make up much of the Donaldsonville landscape. Chip grew up on a sugarcane farm. Those ties to one of Louisiana’s biggest crops — along with his work as a pilot taking him around the Caribbean — led to a love of rum.

Chip is also a bit of a Renaissance man with various hobbies, Natalie said. One of those hobbies led to him making his first still about eight years ago. The original still now resides inside the distillery alongside the new — and more robust — distilling system they use today.

“He’s a man of many hobbies,” Natalie said.

The father and daughter shared a mutual love of cocktails, though their specific tastes vary. Chip is more partial to a Louisiana favorite, rum, while Natalie is more inclined to go for the tequila. Still, that love of spirits led the pair to start working toward opening their own distillery

After about two years of using the homemade still, Chip got the idea to try to turn the hobby into a bonafide distillery. After some thinking, the family decided to incorporate and surprise Chip as a Christmas present.

Initially, the duo thought it might be a one-year process. It ended up taking around six years, and the distillery officially opened its doors in May 2023.

In the course of those six years there were several points where they considered giving up on the project. But eventually, they said, they got to a point where they were so far in, it didn’t make much sense to back out.

It was a stressful time for the family. Natalie and Chip recounted how several family gatherings would turn into discussions about the distillery. But the two had supreme confidence in each other’s abilities. Natalie knew her dad could make a quality product, and Chip knew his daughter had the business and marketing skills to sell it.

“I know her talents in marketing, and I knew we just had to get in the game,” Chip said. “If we could just get in the game, I knew we could make a good product, and she can sell it. If she can say it, she can do it.”

Pickle vodka, tequila and more

Rum was the starting point for NOËL Family Distillery. Natalie knew from years of trying her dad’s homemade spirit that it would be a good product, and Chip knew early on that he wanted to age rum, which is becoming more and more popular in the rum market.

The distillery has two types of dark rum. One has been aged six years in American Oak barrels and finished in tequila casks. The other is a blend of six- and eight-year-aged rum.

But they knew pretty early on that rum alone wouldn’t be enough to keep the distillery afloat.

“She (Natalie) knew right off the bat that we would sink like the Titanic if we just had rum,” Chip said.

Because the journey to establish the distillery took longer than expected, Natalie and Chip were able to spend some extra time expanding their palettes and figuring out what exactly they wanted to make.

Natalie knew she wanted vodka, but a pregnancy craving from years ago brought up the idea for a pickle-flavored vodka. During their time building the distillery, Natalie also fell in love with tequila.

“It was about a year-and-a-half or two years ago, and I said, ‘Dad, I think the pickle vodka is going to be good for us, but maybe tequila is what we need,’” Natalie said. “That could put us on the map…There is no other tequila being offered from another local distillery.”

Natalie said that, in hindsight, it was a pretty crazy idea. But they found a distiller in Mexico and began experimenting with different flavor profiles. They wanted to craft a spirit that incorporated the classic tequila flavors with a Louisiana twist.

What they ended up with was a tequila that is a blend of highland and lowland agave. The distillery has two types of tequila. The Blanco has notes of vanilla and citrus with an earthy tone, while the Reposado has more of a caramel and oak flavor.

Natalie said she and several friends tried a lot of various tequila brands to take notes on what they liked or didn’t like in order to develop their own unique flavor.

“I’m really happy with the way this turned out,” she said.

'Local can taste great'

Even though the distillery is just a few months removed from its official opening, it has already made some headway in establishing itself as a player in Louisiana’s growing distilling industry. Not too long after opening, LSU Athletics announced NOËL would be its official tequila.

“It happened so quickly and out of the blue,” Natalie said. “So now our products are being sold at all the games.”

One of the big focuses now is getting their products on shelves across Louisiana and nationwide. They’ve forged new partnerships to help grow their presence, including a new contract with a national distributor.

Natalie said they want people in Louisiana to realize that local industries — including distilleries — can produce high-quality products.

“We get a lot of feedback from folks that it’s so good that local is tasting so great, which I guess is a surprise for some people,” Natalie said. “Local can taste great and be really high quality.”

Step inside the Noel Distillery in Donaldsonville and you’ll smell the sweet, funky scent of cane juice fermenting and see Natalie Noel, her father Frank, sister, and aunt hard at work checking temperatures on the still, bottling rum and attaching labels.

This is a small but growing family operation, and one of only a handful of rum distilleries in Louisiana.

“We live in one of the largest sugar cane producing areas of the world. Why are we not making more rum?” said 68-year-old Frank "Chip" Noel.

After a life as a pilot, during which he spent a lot of time around the Caribbean and grew fond of cigars and rum, Frank took up distilling as a hobby when he retired.

“His personality my entire life has been about new hobbies,” said Natalie Noel, his daughter and business partner. “Taxidermy, woodworking, golf, etc. He wasn’t just going to drink rum; he had to go to the next level.”

Natalie Noel played basketball at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, where she received a degree in marketing. Later, she earned her MBA at LSU. So when her dad became interested in rum, she thought they could turn it into something more than a hobby.

Frank made his own still, and Natalie and the rest of the family incorporated the business and gave him the paperwork as a Christmas present. That was six years ago, and this year Noel Distillery opened for business.

“I’ve always had a passion for bringing people together to enjoy a good cocktail,” Natalie says. “Starting the distillery gave me the possibility of a legacy to leave down to my kids. And I get to work with my dad. We’re best friends.”

Though Louisiana is one of the largest sugar cane producers in the world, only a handful of distilleries make local rum. The startup costs are high. Distilleries need expensive fermenters and bottling equipment (the Noels have since upgraded from the homemade still), and a lot of regulatory paperwork is required.

“The barrier to entry is extremely high,” Natalie Noel said.

Plus, despite Louisiana’s love of daiquiris, rum is not most people’s alcohol of choice. Vodka is the most popular spirit in the U.S., though tequila has inched closer in recent years, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the U.S.

The Noels hope to change that. Many Americans think of rum as spiced or sweet. That’s because most rum sold in the U.S. is made with molasses or mixed into sugary drinks.

But "rhum agricole," the French term for rum made directly from sugar cane juice, is grassy and herbal. And aged rum, like the one the Noels are working on, can drink almost like a whiskey.

“I want to be known for flavor and fun,” Natalie Noel said. “Louisiana has so much spirit and culture, so much diversity and flair. Tito’s is at every single festival in Louisiana, but I want to scream from the rooftops: Local can be exceptional,” she said.

The Noels are making an agricole rum they hope to release in summer of 2024. Frank grew up on a sugar cane farm and his cousin is one of the largest sugar cane producers in the state, so he has a good relationship with the mill where they get their juice.

“It’s a whole process of trying to ferment this muddy juice,” he says.

From sweet, fresh juice comes great rum. Sugar cane juice is a raw material and starts to ferment immediately. Frank Noel likes to keep it cool for a slow fermentation, which he says is key for getting maximum flavor.

That and his proprietary blend of yeast.

After fermentation, the juice is pumped into a still and boiled down to 90 proof. Ten gallons of juice makes about 75 to 80 bottles of rum.

From there, it can be served or aged. The Noels are making a 3-year aged rum in addition to the agricole.

Because there was a lag on when rum made from Louisiana cane could be produced, this year the distillery is selling a rum made with molasses from Central America. It is finished in tequila barrels, which imparts a unique agave flavor. Natalie Noel says it is great in cocktails with banana, mint and other tropical ingredients.

Noel Distillery also has a vodka made from corn twice distilled, a pickle vodka, and a tequila.

The tequila recently won a gold medal at the New York International Spirits Competition.

The hardest part of the business so far, Natalie Noel said, has been trying to change human drinking behavior.

“To get out of the marketplace and say ‘hey, we exist!’” she said. “People don’t want to try something new or don’t believe the quality is good.”

For now, the spirits are available at Calandro’s, Hocus Pocus, and other retailers, as well as Bengal Tap, Mother’s, Uncle Earl’s and a few other Baton Rouge bars. The Noels recently signed a contract with Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits, a large distribution company they hope will help spread the word about Louisiana rum.

Those interesting in making the trip to Donaldsonville can visit the distillery from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday to Friday, take a tour for $12 and taste all four spirits for $8. Tours are available Saturdays on request, and the distillery hosts Christmas parties and other events.