On Sept. 27, the North Dakota Public Service Commission approved a siting permit for the proposed Cerilon Gas-To-Liquids plant Williams County, North Dakota.

According to Cerilon, the plant will convert natural gas into lubricants, diesel fuel, naphtha, and potentially aviation fuel. If built, it will be the first large-scale, natural gas-fed gas-to-liquids facility” in North America, the company’s website states. Tallgrass says it will capture and sequester carbon dioxide from the plant, though such technology has not been proven to be effective or economical on a large scale.  

The facility is planned for currently undeveloped land off Highway 1804 southwest of the town of Trenton. The siting permit moves the project one step closer to completion, but Cerilon still needs to obtain an air quality permit from the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality before construction can begin.