The developers of South Dakota's biggest proposed project say the economic recession could actually help them. Hyperion Energy says the thousands of jobs its proposed oil refinery will bring to Union County could be the shot in the arm South Dakota needs.

With the economy in a recession you wouldn't think it would be the right time to build a refinery. Demand for oil is down in the United States. The credit markets have tightened up. And billions of dollars worth of Canadian oil projects, which would provide Hyperion with the oil for its refinery, are being cancelled and delayed. Despite all the negative news Hyperion still says its project is right for South Dakota.

Right now its just a $10 billion plan, but its a plan that Hyperion officials are confident will become reality.

"With the economic times today its possible we've got more support then we did during the referendum vote," Hyperion Energy project executive Preston Phillips said.

Preston Phillips, the project executive of the Hyperion Energy Center, points to jobs as the biggest push to break ground on a project that will bring thousands of them to Union County.

"Randall Steufen at the University of South Dakota did estimate it's going to create over 14,000 permanent jobs, that's direct, indirect and secondary jobs in the economy," Phillips said.

That's on top of the 4,500 construction jobs the refinery would create.

But, Phillips acknowledges that the demand for oil in the United States has dropped off since Union County voters gave their approval to the refinery project, but he says there is still a need for more refineries in America.

"There's been a drop in demand, maybe five percent, but the fact remains we still import over four million barrels a day of refined products in addition to all of the crude oil we import into this country," Phillips said.

And that's why he says the time is right to turn the plans for a Union County refinery into reality by the year 2015. 

"That's a long time from now, and things are going to change, just as they've changed in the last 18 months, they are going to change in the next four to five years."

Hyperion will be looking to take its next big step in building its proposed refinery in the next few months. Public hearings on its air permit application start next week in Elk Point.

Hear what opponents have to say about the recession and Hyperion's proposed refinery on the March 1, 2009 Eye On KELOLAND.