Clinton council approves agreement with Hobo Renewable Diesel for $1.4B plant; company, city outline jobs and infrastructure

The Clinton City Council voted to approve a purchase, sale and development agreement with Hobo Renewable Diesel LLC on March 25, 2025, clearing the way for the company to proceed with plans for a renewable diesel plant in the city.

City and company representatives told the council the project is a major industrial development with roughly $1,400,000,000 in capital expenditures, a three‑year construction timeline and a two‑decade operating commitment from the developer. "It's a roughly capex‑wise. It's about a $1,400,000,000 project," said Mike Kois, a Hobo Renewable Diesel representative who participated online.

The project team said construction would employ as many as about 1,000 people at peak, most concentrated in the middle to later stages of the build, and the facility would employ roughly 60 to 70 people full time once operational. Company representatives described the plant as producing a low‑carbon diesel from local feedstocks, including soybean oil and distillers corn oil, and other fats.

Council members and staff described the site location for the project as south of an existing Atlas facility near Highway 30 and the municipal airport access roads, and they said new public infrastructure would accompany private work. "This was done by Iowa DOT and Atlas, and then this road over here in South 50 Fourth will be done by DOT and by Hobo," a council speaker said during discussion. Council and staff also referenced rail access and sewer work tied to the development.

During the discussion the council heard from Randy Gibbs and Kois (online) and took the formal vote to adopt the resolution authorizing the city to execute the purchase, sale and development agreement. Company representatives said they expect to announce construction later in the year.

Council remarks included comments about remaining industrial acreage around the site; one council member said the sale would leave "only about 39 acres left over," while staff later referenced roughly "388 acres" available through Grow Clinton and Iowa land resources — figures presented to characterize remaining developable land and not reconciled on the record.

The resolution was adopted by the council. The agreement authorizes the mayor and city staff to finalize the documents necessary to convey the property and to facilitate the project's infrastructure connections.

Next steps described on the record include coordination between Hobo, the Iowa Department of Transportation and city staff on road and rail work and subsequent city actions to finalize addresses and permitting for the construction phase.