A company called U.S. Sustainable Energy Corp. is setting up shop in Adams County.

The company, which says it makes biodiesel fuel from soybeans, bought a warehouse and the surrounding land near the Natchez-Adams County Port Facility Tuesday.

CEO John Rivera said Tuesday the company would open a plant at the site that will eventually produce 1.5 million gallons of biofuel a day.

According to the USSEC Web site, the company acquired the 35 acres through an affiliated holding company. The deed lists the company as being based in Florida.

The Web site says the property was appraised at $8.9 million. Rivera said his company paid less than that but over $6 million.

Rivera said he planned to have the plant at full production in 18 months and employ 300 people, possibly eventually hiring up to 2,000 people.

The plant and the process will be unique, Rivera said.

“It will be the first of its kind in the world,” Rivera said. “It’s a totally new process — I’m the inventor. I make five gallons of fuel per bushel of soybeans. Everybody else makes one-and-a-half.”

Rivera said the was closing his research and development plant in Port Gibson, which he said currently produces 6,000 gallons of the fuel a day.

About 15 people were working at the warehouse Wednesday, installing lights and moving the materials stored there.

“We hope to have our first four reactors up in the next six weeks,” Rivera said. Eventually, “we will have 200 reactors,” he said.

Rivera said he applications were being accepted at the warehouse. He said he thought the plant would “give Natchez a big boost in the arm economically,” and that he was pleased to be in Adams County.

“I can’t wait to get going,” he said. “Everybody said I couldn’t do it and wouldn’t do it, and I guess I proved them wrong.”

The warehouse was sold to USSEC Riverside II LLC by MSIP I Natchez LLC, an out-of-state company. In the past, former Natchez mayor Larry “Butch” Brown, among others, owned the warehouse.

Adams County Supervisors President Darryl Grennell said Wednesday was the first time he had heard of the sale.

“We’ve not even discussed it in a board meeting,” Grennell said. “Nothing has been presented to us.”

Grennell said he needed more information before he could comment.

Although the plant is outside city limits, Natchez Mayor Phillip West said he hoped the plant would benefit the community.

“I’m happy and hopeful that he will be able to do what he has said he was going to do because it would be a tremendous boost to our area,” West said. “I know there are apprehensions about him. I’m just hopeful that he can produce. I don’t discount anybody.”