CUSTER - Pacer Corp. of Custer was recently approved for a $450,000 Revolving Economic Development & Initiative Fund loan to buy state-of-the-art processing equipment and expand its existing facility, Gov. Mike Rounds announced.

The company plans to create 19 jobs in the next three years.

Pacer is a leading producer of high-quality muscovite mica and potash feldspar, which are mined in the Blacks Hills.

Pacer products are used in a wide range of applications including plastics, rubber, coatings, ceramics, sanitary ware, drywall joint compound and a variety of construction and automotive applications.

The new equipment will allow the company to extract and separate white mica from the same ore that it currently mines.

"The capability to produce white mica will allow the introduction of new mica products into new and expanding markets," said Scott DeVos, vice president of sales and marketing for Pacer.

The money will also help in the construction of a 40-foot-by-80-foot warehouse addition to its existing plant.

"The Pacer Corp. greatly appreciates the importance South Dakota places on continued economic development," Duff Kruse, Pacer president, said.