Oakley ? An ethanol plant in Oakley will receive a $5 million federal grant to build a machine to improve the process of converting ethanol into fuel.

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the grant in a news release Monday. It will provide funds for a biogas anaerobic digester at the Western Plains Energy plant in Oakley.

Western Plains currently produces about 50 million gallons of ethanol every year in Oakley.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports the digester is expected to replace 90 percent of the fossil fuels Western Plains uses to process the fuel with waste from a cattle feedlot.

The project is expected to create 15 permanent full-time jobs and almost 100 construction jobs.

The grant comes through USDA Rural Development’s Repowering Assistance Program.