Friday, June 11, 2010

ICM Building Missouri Ethanol Plant

Getting approval from the Department of Energy, ICM will soon begin construction on a $25 million cellulosic ethanol plant, which will be built in St. Joseph, Missouri.

Along with the plant will be a demonstration facility.

An existing plant which was formally used to make ethanol from grain will be switched to making ethanol from switchgrass, energy sorghum and corn fiber.

Construction on the project, which ICM will contribute $6 million to, will start in August.

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Pacific Ethanol (Nasdaq:PEIX) May Reopen Two Idle Plants

Pacific Ethanol (Nasdaq:PEIX) announced recently it is reorganizing the company in order to bring its four production subsidiaries out of bankruptcy.

They opened up the Magic Valley plant located in Idaho earlier in the year, and have plans to open up two more idled ethanol plants soon.

Lenders have already approved of the reorganization plan, and the two idled plants, which are both located in California, may resume production by the end of June.

Pacific Ethanol will be allowed to acquire up to 25 percent of the overall ownership in the new holding company, which has the subsidiaries transferred to it. The cost will be up to $30 million in cash.

Two plants wholly owned by Pacific are now operational - one in Boardman, Oregon, and the other in Burley, Idaho.

Combined they can produce up to 100 million of ethanol annually.

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

ADM (NYSE:ADM) Pressing for 12 Percent Ethanol Mandate

Archer Daniels Midland (NYSE:ADM) is pressuring the Environmental Protection Agency to approve an increase in the blend of ethanol and gasoline to 12 percent, as they attempt to take advantage of the forced increase to generate revenue and profits for the company.

Supposedly the introduction of a 12 percent ethanol blend would help make the alternative fuel more available, although there really isn't a big demand for it, and probably wouldn't exist if it wasn't for government subsidies, which need to be dropped.

The ethanol ADM makes is from corn, which is extremely hard on the environment and opposed by people and groups of all persuasions.

This is an attempt by Archer Daniels Midland to use the current oil spill to push the use of alternative fuels, more for the purpose of generate strong earnings because of the fall of corn prices than anything else.