Biodiesel refiner Imperium repays some debt

Imperium Renewables, the struggling Seattle biodiesel refiner, said Friday its existing investors provided an infusion that was largely used to repay a portion of its debts. The firm, which operates a Grays Harbor plant with a 100 million gallon annual capacity, also hired a third-party debt restructuring firm to help it negotiate with remaining creditors.

"With this recapitalization and cooperation of our creditors, we hope to resume operations as soon as possible," said Chief Executive John Plaza in a statement.

Neither the sum contributed by investors nor the total outstanding debt were disclosed.

Closely held Imperium raised significant amounts of cash and obtained a $41 million loan and a $60 million credit facility from Societe Generale as it built one of the nation's largest biodiesel plants, the first in a planned global network.

But plans for further expansion and a public stock offering were scrapped as the company struggled with the high cost of raw materials and financial markets unreceptive to biodiesel ventures.

The recent move is a "significant step" in the company's bid to turn itself around, "but we still face hurdles as the amount of funding is limited," Plaza said.