POET plans plant

POET Biorefining is moving forward with construction of a new biofuel facility in Indiana.

The new plant, to be built in Shelbyville, will be the 48th in POET’s network. The company already has four other biofuels plants in Indiana, including POET Biorefining-Portland.

Final permit approval was this week for the planned 80 million-gallon-per-year facility. With full construction started, the expected completion date for the nearly $160 million facility is spring of 2020, the company said in a press release.

“This is the right project in the right location at the right time,” chief executive officer Jeff Broin said in a prepared statement. “Farmers desperately need the income boost from this new market for grain, and President Trump’s recent announcement of year-round E15 sales has the biofuels industry poised for new growth and prosperity. Shelbyville is leading the way for future production to meet new E15 demand. We’re excited to partner yet again with Indiana to create a cleaner, healthier environment for our children and grandchildren.”

The Shelbyville plant will create 45 full-time jobs.

New demand for biofuels is expected in coming years once the Trump Administration provides full consumer access to E15 year-round. President Trump announced in October that he has directed the EPA to change regulations that limit E15 availability.

Full implementation of E15 nationwide would add 7 billion gallons of biofuels demand and an additional 2 billion bushels of corn demand for farmers.



Solid quarter

Comcast, which provides cable TV and internet service to many local communities, reported solid third-quarter results this week.

The company’s revenues grew 5 percent over last year to $22.1 billion.

According to Forbes, the company “benefited from continuing gains in broadband revenues, which offset declines in video revenues as residential subscribers continued cutting cords.”

Comcast’s NBCUniversal saw strong results in television (broadcast and cable) amid higher distribution, advertising and licensing revenues.

But its theme parks remained a drag in the quarter as a result of severe weather and natural disasters in Japan, Forbes reported.



Google this

Indiana Michigan Power announced this week it will be the first utility to partner with Tendril and Google to provide customers with voice-activated energy information and notifications via the Google Assistant and Google Home devices.

I&M will use the energy usage data to optimize consumer smart home energy management and to ensure the reliability of the entire grid network, the utility said in a press release.

The Tendril and Google platform will deliver energy insights through any device that supports the Google Assistant.

According to I&M, its consumers will be able to ask and get answers to questions such as: “Ok, Google, what is my bill amount?” or “Hey Google, how can I reduce my energy consumption?”

The utility said additional interaction with smart devices in the home builds on an existing effort between the two companies to better manage residential load using Nest thermostats.



New wing

Mercer County Community Hospital in Coldwater, Ohio, has opened its new west wing.

The 67,000-square-foot, three-story wing includes a new outpatient center, an inpatient center, a surgical center and the atrium.

The outpatient center includes 10 outpatient treatment rooms, two chemotherapy infusion rooms and two procedure rooms.

The inpatient center, located on the second floor, provides 18 new private patient rooms and bathrooms.

An inpatient center on the third floor in the current east wing will continue to be used, allowing for over 40 inpatient rooms at Mercer Health’s Mercer County Community Hospital.

The surgical center, located on the third floor of the new wing, features four operating rooms, two scope rooms, six recovery rooms, 16 private pre- and post-operating rooms, two private consultation rooms and a waiting area.



Acquired

Bluffton’s Pretzels Inc. has been sold to Peak Rock Capital, The News-Banner reported this week.

Peak Rock, a private equity firm, announced the acquisition in a press release.

Earlier this year, Peak Rock acquired TNT Crust, a pizza crust maker, from Tyson Foods and Louisiana Fish Fry Products.

It also owns Sweet Harvest Foods, Berner Food and Beverage, Diamond Crystal Brands and Gold Coast Bakeries.

The company is based in Texas.

Pretzels Inc. has operations in Bluffton and in Plymouth, producing pretzels and other snack products.



Extended

A shutdown at Fiat Chrysler’s plants in Kokomo and Tipton has been extended by two weeks “in order to adjust inventory,” The Kokomo Tribune reported this week.

The Kokomo plant produces 65/66/68 RFE RWD transmissions for Ram Trucks, Cummins Diesel and Heavy Duty and 948TE transmissions in all-wheel, four-wheel and two-wheel drive configurations for the Jeep Cherokee, Jeep Renegade, Chrysler Pacifica and Ram ProMaster City.

The Tipton plant produces nine-speed transmissions in all-wheel, four-wheel, two-wheel and hybrid drive configurations for the Jeep Cherokee, Jeep Renegade, Chrysler Pacifica, Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid and Ram ProMaster City.



Earnings up

Park National Corporation, parent of Second National Bank in Fort Recovery, this week reported financial results for the third quarter and first nine months of 2018. Park's board of directors also declared a quarterly cash dividend of 96 per common share, payable on Dec. 10, 2018, to common shareholders of record as of Nov. 16.

The bank holding company’s net income for the third quarter of 2018 was $24.8 million, a 12.0 percent increase from $22.1 million for the third quarter of 2017.

Park's net income for the first nine months of 2018 was $84.1 million, a 37.0 percent increase from $61.4 million for the same period in 2017.



Sales up

McDonald’s Corp. reported higher sales in the third quarter, but that’s because it’s charging more for its food, The Wall Street Journal reported last week.

“The company has been trying to revive traffic growth in the U.S. by upgrading restaurants, serving burgers made with fresh rather than frozen beef and offering drinks for a dollar. The chain also has been trying to make its food healthier by removing preservatives from its burgers. However, the 2.4 percent growth in same-store sales in its home market, which was roughly in line with analysts’ expectations, was largely driven by higher-priced menu items,” The Journal reported.



Files suit

Walmart Inc. filed a lawsuit this week against its longtime credit-card issuer, Synchrony Financial. The suit alleges that Synchrony breached the terms of its contract with the retailer.

Filed in U.S. District Court in Arkansas, the lawsuit claims that some of Synchrony’s underwriting standards financially harmed Walmart.

Walmart is seeking damages estimated at $800 million.

Synchrony was Walmart’s exclusive credit-card issuer for nearly two decades. This summer, Walmart switched to Capital One Financial Corp.