NATCHEZ &8212; Pending approval of state and federal incentives, Colorado-based fuel manufacturer Rentech plans to build a 200-job plant at the former Belwood Country Club site near the Natchez-Adams Port, completing construction by fall 2010, county and company officials announced Tuesday.

The plant would make diesel fuel from coal and petroleum coke shipped downriver from Rentech&8217;s Illinois location and would produce, as by-products, agricultural fertilizer and steam. The fuel itself is clean-burning and contains less than one part per million of sulfur, according to information from Rentech.

While some chemical engineers would be hired for key positions at the plant, the vast majority of jobs would be available to high school or college graduates who would then be trained by existing Rentech personnel.

The average pay for a job at the plant would be $45,000 plus benefits, said company President D. Hunt Ramsbottom.

&8220;It seems too good to be true, but it is true,&8221; said supervisors President Darryl Grennell. Grennell added the Economic Development Authority, principally Chairman Woody Allen, have been instrumental in getting the Rentech deal this far.

Rentech said it first considered Mississippi for its new plant location after Hurricane Katrina, when regional fuel shortages showed the need for more locally-produced fuel, Ramsbottom said. Rising natural gas prices are also spurring the creation of alternative fuel sources, he noted. Specifically, shipping coal and petroleum coke by river is cheaper than by truck, and the Natchez-Adams Port could handle the freight, Rentech officials said.

The fuel has an eight-year shelf life &8212; high above that of regular diesel &8212; and, with low sulfur content, means less engine wear and cleaner emissions, they said. A major market for Rentech patented fuel, called Fischer-Tropsch fuel, is the U.S. Department of Defense, which Rentech&8217;s governmental relations director said is requesting 300,000 barrels a day of the fuel.

The plant would represent a $650 million to $750 million investment by Rentech and its financial partners, including Los Angeles-based MAG Capital and Credit Suisse First Boston.

&8220;Our belief is that (this fuel) represents the future of energy policy,&8221; said David Firestone, managing partner for MAG Capital.

However, there&8217;s no telling exactly when state and federal officials might OK the incentives needed to start the plant, Ramsbottom acknowledged, adding those incentives could include loan guarantees as well as financial incentives.

A few years ago, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development designated northern Adams County as an empowerment zone, making industries there eligible for various tax credits. Supervisors have since passed a resolution asking the state&8217;s congressional delegation to push to expand the EZ zone to include the port and the nearby Belwood property. And on Monday, they said they&8217;ll send copies of that resolution to the delegation again &8212; something they hope could send additional tax incentives the way of Rentech and future industrial prospects.