BUSINESS&PEOPLE
Business& People Ethanol Industry Briefs Business Ethanol producers garner awards
Pacific Ethanol releases quarterly results In its delayed fourth-quarter filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on March 27, California-based Pacific Ethanol Inc. announced a $14.7 million loss for 2007 and a need for immediate funding to recover from those losses. Less than two weeks later, the company received $40 million in the form of stock sales and announced it would begin production at its 50 MMgy ethanol plant in Burley, Idaho, in the near future. Losses in 2007 were attributed to high feedstock prices and a lag in ethanol demand. The company expects that increased blending mandates on the West Coast in upcoming years will remedy the problem. EP
CFTC awaits CBOT, CME comments The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission had received one comment at press time in response to proposed rule changes on ethanol swaps and options contracts submitted by the Chicago Board of Trade and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in March, according to CFTC spokesman R. David Gary. The rule change would apply to contracts that are currently defined as “excluded swap transactions” by the Commodity Exchange Act. The contracts covered by the petition are limited to cleared-only, over-the-counter contracts. The deadline for the CFTC to accept comments was April 8. EP
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In mid-March, CSX Transportation Inc., a Jacksonville, Fla., rail, intermodal and railto-truck service provider, announced the winners of its annual Chemical Safety Excellence Award. The honor reflects a company’s commitment to railcar maintenance and safety. Several of the 64 shippers recognized were involved in ethanol production, including Ace Ethanol LLC, Archer Daniels Midland Co., Cargill Inc., Glacial Lakes Energy LLC, Global Ethanol, Granite Falls Energy LLC, U.S. Bioenergy Corp. and VeraSun Energy Corp. In addition to the CSX award, Glacial Lakes Energy was recently recognized by Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Co. for outstanding stewardship in protecting employees, the public and the environment. The Watertown, S.D.based company was also awarded an Industrial Operation and Maintenance Excellence Award by the state’s Department of Environment and Natural Resources. EP
Fremont Industries creates Biofuels Group Fremont Industries Inc., a Minnesotabased water treatment company, recently created a division devoted entirely to the biofuels industry. The new division, the Biofuels Group, will provide any type of biofuels facility with the technology and equipment needed to recycle and reuse its wastewater streams. The cost of a specialized water treatment program varies, depending on the size of the plant and the quality of water being used. However, the Biofuels Group said it has developed a costcompetitive, zero-liquid and—in some cases—zero-solids discharge technology that is worth the investment. EP
Raven Biofuels, Pure Energy to merge
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Delaware-based Raven Biofuels International Corp. and New Jersey-based Pure Energy Corp. announced a proposed merger in mid-March aimed at producing cellulosic ethanol. The two companies plan to produce ethanol, furfural and waste heat from several biomass sources using Pure Energy’s technology, which involves a double dilute sulfuric acid pretreatment that creates separate streams of five- and six-carbon sugars, and lignin. The two companies have a combined four plants under development. Pure Energy is also looking for partners to license its technology. EP ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE JUNE 2008