SIDNEY -- ENGlobal Engineering manager of processing engineering Gary Reeves' experience in a small providence of Thailand is a source for his enthusiasm behind a proposed energy complex between here and Williston.

"It has become a world-class chemical megaplex, and it all started from a little gas plant," Reeves said of the Thailand effort.

So when he looks at a proposal to build an oil refinery and topping facility, individual ethanol, coal-to-liquids and biodiesel plants and a wind farm, all within one big complex, Reeves gets excited.

"This is a big project. It is going to be immense when it is done," he said of the idea that's been embraced by the Mon-Dak Energy Alliance.

The alliance held its second formal meeting at the Elks Club here Thursday evening, which provided about 70 people with an update on the status of the various plants. Reeves then pulled everything together when he talked about the advantages of locating the individual plants in one large complex. "It can happen with the right push behind it," he said.

The complex needs coal, crude oil, corn and fats/oils to process, Reeves said. The complex then needs a large amount of land with ample water, transportation, road and rail service, pipelines, electricity, fuel gas and markets.

"A lot of the plants use the same raw materials," Reeves said of what's proposed for the complex.

The various end products to be produced by the individual plants can be transported to market through a shared pipeline. This requires a very large tank farm, however, to store the finished product in before it is shipped, Reeves said.

"There is an outlet for everything here," he said of the products produced.

A combined effort by the individual plants also allows the best opportunity to attract and retain the rail service that is needed, Reeves added.

The water also can be reused by individual plants in parts of their processing steps, Reeves said, which means a lot less overall water is needed than would be the case if the plants operated separately.

In updating the proposed main oil refinery by Northwest Refining Inc. of Williston that is intending to refine 100,000 barrels per day, Reeves said it would need about 1,000-plus acres of land. Refinery proponents must first lock into a site, however, before it can submit applications for any of the necessary permits, he added.

"First of all, we don't know which state to put it in," Reeves said. "You have different rules."

But in answering the question "Is is feasible?" Reeves leaves no doubt in saying, "Yes, the answer is it is."

Meanwhile, the Yellowstone Ethanol LCC group still needs to lock in its financing after having received all of its necessary permits, said board member Chet Hill, a value-added ag specialist for North Dakota State University.

Hill said the ethanol facility has a location in mind at Marley Crossing immediately west of Trenton. Once operational, the plant is to produce 55 million gallons of ethanol and 200,000 tons of distiller's grains a year while using 25 million bushels of corn a year, he added.

Mike Wavra of Dakota Oil Processing LLC is developing the proposed topping plant to produce diesel fuel and possibly jet fuel. Wavra said since the last alliance meeting in Williston, it has received its air permit from the state of North Dakota.

The topping plant site also is near Trenton and Wavra said the proponents are working with a third party on marketing for its product. It also hopes to begin an equity drive for the plant within the next six to eight weeks, he said.