Commissioner Says Wyoming Malting Plant Work Moving Ahead

Laramie County Commissioner Troy Thompson says work on the Wyoming Malting Plant facility in Pine Bluffs seems to be progressing well.

Thompson says county officials hear a progress report on work on the facility Thursday night in Albin.

He says they were told the grain bins for the plant are in place and the steel frame for the plant is completed.Thompson says everything he has heard indicates the work is moving ahead as planned.

Groundbreaking on the malting plant was held in July, and at that time company officials said they were hoping to begin operations around January of 2017.

Thompson said the malting plant is a great example of how to add value to Wyoming products. When completed the 20,000 square foot facility will take locally grown barley and turn it into malt, most of which will initially be sold to microbreweries in Colorado.

Some of the malt can also be used for distilling whiskey, and Thompson says he understands eventually some of the malt will be used to produce scotch, although he adds that won't happen right away.

The facility will initially be owned by Cheyenne LEADS, which will lease the plant to business partners Chad Brown and Gene Purdy. The partners will have the option to eventually purchase the plant.