Wyoming Officials Weighing $3 Million for Pine Bluffs Malting Facility

Cheyenne, Wyo. (AP) -- Top Wyoming officials are set to consider a proposal to allocate $3 million in state funding for a new barley malting plant in Pine Bluffs.

The Wyoming Business Council recommends the State Loan and Investment Board approve a combination grant and loan for the project. The board, which includes Gov. Matt Mead and other statewide elected officials, is set to consider the issue next week.

Plans call for building the facility in the Pine Bluffs Business Park. It would be owned by a local economic development organization and leased to businesses owned by Pine Bluffs residents Gene Purdy and Chad Brown.

The Wyoming Business Council says the facility would help to meet the demand for malt at breweries in the region and also supply malt for distilling whiskey.