Rumors of the shutdown of Liquid Resources of Ohio are false, the company's
chief executive told Ohio Venture Association members in a speech Friday.
However, the state's only ethanol producer has faced several challenges
in its first year-and-a-half of operation.
The Medina company makes the clean-burning fuel additive by recycling waste
alcohol – stale beer, used laboratory alcohol and the like.
Liquid Resources also recycles the bottles, cans and cardboard in which the
wastes are packaged.
Initially, the company also planned to make ethanol from waste sugars, such
as expired soda pop.
But equipment problems have stood in the way, CEO Tim Curtiss said, indicating
that his company is moving forward with plans to recycle sugar wastes, too.
Liquid Resources, whose clients pay it to get rid of their unwanted byproducts,
had been disposing of sugar wastes by treating them and releasing them to the
county sewer.
On June 9, the Medina County Sewer District plugged the company's sewer
line because the sugar caused violations at the county's wastewater
treatment plant, said Ken Hotz, sanitary engineer for Medina County.
Although the county restored the company's noncommercial sewer service,
Liquid Resources was required to seal its flood drains and clean-outs so
no sugar would be discharged in the event of a spill, Hotz said.
Then in late June came a surprise search of the company's plant by state
officials from the attorney general's office and the Environmental
Protection Agency who were looking for evidence of hazardous materials, Curtiss
said.
Curtiss said he felt his company has done nothing wrong. Liquid Resources
has hired trucks to take its sugar wastes to treatment plants that can handle
them, he said.
Despite the problems, Liquid Resources broke even in the first quarter, which
put it slightly ahead of schedule, Curtiss said. The company also plans to
grow by establishing other locations nationwide, even worldwide. The company
hired a new chief operating officer in June.
Curtiss offered some parting thoughts to entrepreneurs:
- Make sure
you have more capital than you think you need;
- Surround yourself
with the best advisers you can get;
- Be ready to change your business
plan;
- Make sure you have ironclad contracts;
- and communicate frequently
with stakeholders, whether you have good news or bad.
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