The John Deere Foundation, the primary philanthropic arm of Deere & Co., has committed $1.25 million for construction of a new agricultural and biosystems engineering center at Iowa State University. The building is part of a planned $63.3 million complex that will include ISU’s Office of Biorenewables Programs.

The development of biorenewable fuel resources holds exceptional economic potential for Iowa, said Michael J. Mack Jr., a director of the foundation and chief financial officer of Deere & Co.

“Technical support from the university is essential to producing renewable fuels on a large scale and in an economically feasible, sustainable manner,” Mack said.

Fund raising for the new building began last September with a $5 million commitment from ISU alumnus Virgil Elings. The facility, to be located near Howe Hall, is part of a planned three-building, 166,000-square-foot complex that will replace outdated laboratories, classrooms and offices. The university anticipates that $12 million of the total cost of the complex will be funded by private sources, with the remainder to be requested from the Legislature.

The Deere gift was made through the ISU Foundation, a private, non-profit corporation dedicated to securing and managing gifts and grants to benefit ISU.