US city tries to avoid legal battle after cancelling Chinese corn mill project in North Dakota
- Fufeng USA and the city of Grand Forks have 90 days to come to terms on details stemming from the termination of the proposed US$700 million plant
- The company has not commented about possibly selling the land to an American firm or transferring the development agreement to a third party
A month after a multimillion-dollar agriculture project near Grand Forks, North Dakota, was ordered halted over suspicions about its ownership’s ties to China, the city is grappling with the prospect of a legal battle against the company.
This week, the city of Grand Forks approved entering into a “standstill agreement” on the termination of the proposed US$700 million corn milling plant by Fufeng USA, a subsidiary of the China-based Fufeng Group.
City Council President Dana Sande said the move, which council members agreed to unanimously, would provide the “opportunity to negotiate without going to court” and would “saving our community a considerable amount of money”.
“We are talking about going to court with a multibillion-dollar company that probably isn’t super happy with our community right now. So I would prefer our city attorney has the opportunity to go and have some friendly discussions rather than going into an unfriendly situation,” he said.
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'Red scare' or security threat? North Dakota city torn over proposed Chinese milling plant
The council voted last month, also unanimously, to cancel the 370-acre (150-hectare) facility after the US Air Force raised national security concerns about its proximity to Grand Forks Air Force Base.