ADM announced a multi‑phase program to expand processing at its Columbus, Nebraska, corn dry mill, saying the work will raise annual corn throughput by 20 million bushels compared with 2025.
Upgrades in two stages
Company documents and statements say equipment modernization completed since 2025 enabled the plant to process roughly 10 million additional bushels in 2026 compared with the previous year. A second set of improvements, beginning this fall and scheduled for completion in 2027, will introduce further technologies ADM expects will add another 10 million bushels of annual capacity.
- 2026: operational gains from equipment upgrades, ~10 million more bushels vs. 2025
- 2027: additional technologies to boost yields and reduce natural gas use per ton of dried distillers grains with solubles (DDGS)
The company said the projects are part of a broader program across ADM’s North American operations to expand biofuels capacity and link agricultural production to lower‑carbon markets.
Carbon capture and low‑carbon markets
ADM noted earlier steps at Columbus, including a 2025 partnership with Tallgrass under which carbon dioxide from ethanol production is captured and moved via the Trailblazer pipeline for geologic sequestration in Wyoming. The company said in 2026 that it planned to enter the voluntary carbon market with more than 800,000 tons of annual carbon removal capacity tied to the Columbus facility.
ADM also said the upcoming upgrades aim to reduce natural gas consumption per ton of DDGS produced in the plant’s dryers. The company did not release detailed projections of energy savings or expected reductions in greenhouse gas emissions tied to the work.
Context and drivers
ADM linked the investment to policy and market signals it sees supporting U.S. biofuels: renewable fuel volume obligations, tax incentives that affect long‑term planning, and growing demand for lower‑carbon transportation fuels. The company described the Columbus spending as one element of a continent‑wide series of projects that also include infrastructure and capacity work in Iowa, Kentucky and Oklahoma.
The Columbus upgrades follow a year in which ADM emphasized operational progress and safety milestones at the facility. The company said the work will increase demand for corn from Nebraska and surrounding regions by expanding the plant’s annual grind compared with 2025 levels.
ADM did not provide a timetable for hiring or a dollar total for the Columbus projects. The company also did not quantify how much additional corn would be contracted from Nebraska farmers specifically, beyond the aggregate increase in processing capacity.
