WASHINGTON – Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Neal A. McCaleb today announced the awarding of a $460,518 grant to the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation in North Dakota, to support the Tribes’ efforts to enter the oil refining business by building a Clean Fuels Petroleum Refinery (CFPR) on its reservation. “With the right help, tribes can find innovative ways of developing and using their natural resources to build a strong economic base and provide jobs for their people,” McCaleb said. “The Three Affiliated Tribes want to become a player in the oil refining industry. I’m pleased that we can help them to achieve their dream.”
The Three Affiliated Tribes (TAT) is working on developing an $80 million Clean Fuels Petroleum Refinery that will have a capacity of 10,000 barrels per stream day (BPSD). The facility will be built using state-of-the-art technology and design concepts to ensure it will have a low impact on the earth and can coexist with an agricultural area such as that found on the Fort Berthold Reservation. Once the refinery is completed, the Tribes’ will be able to produce propone, gasoline, jet fuel and diesel products.
The TAT was awarded $1.385 million from the Commerce Department’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) to conduct a front-end engineering and design (FEED) study to address issues and concerns regarding the refinery. The grant announced today will assist the Tribes in obtaining permits, conducting market analysis and addressing legal, taxation and financing needs in preparation for construction.
The Assistant Secretary - Indian Affairs has responsibility for fulfilling the Department’s trust responsibility to American Indian and Alaska Native tribes and individuals, as well as promoting tribal self-determination and economic development. The Assistant Secretary oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which is responsible for providing services to approximately 1.4 million American Indians and Alaska Natives and the nation’s 562 federally recognized tribes.
