West Coast Biodiesel Giant Nabs Big Investments

John Davis

Imperium1.gif Seattle-based Imperium Renewables has announced it has secured $214 million in investments… possibly a record for biodiesel makers in the U.S. and reflecting a trend in more money going into the renewable fuel.

From an Imperium Renewables press release:

Imperium Renewables, Inc. today announced it has closed its Series B round with $113million of private equity and has mandated Société Générale Corporate & Investment Banking to act as sole book-runner and lead arranger of a $101 million Senior Secured Credit Facility.

The company, one of the largest biodiesel producers on the West Coast, will operate the nations largest biodiesel plant when its Port of Grays Harbor facility opens this July. With this investment, the company will continue its plans to open additional facilities around the world, including Hawaii, the Northeast United States and internationally.

All of the Imperium facilities are expected to produce a total of 400 million gallons of biodiesel a year by the end of 2008.

A reported $2.6 billion in investments were sunk into biodiesel in 2006… an increase of nearly 80% from 2005.

Biodiesel

Johanns to Keynote Biofuels Investment Seminar

Cindy Zimmerman

Mike Johanns Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns will be the keynote speaker at a symposium next month on biofuels investments.

“Biomass and Biorefinery Deals 2007” will bring leading government officials, developers, equity and venture financiers, and technology providers together to discuss how to best accelerate the implementation of emerging biomass and biorefinery technology and optimize the revenue flows for projects.

The symposium will be held March 26-28 at AED Conference Center in Washington DC. More information can be found here.

Biodiesel, conferences, Ethanol

FCStone to Serve as Market Maker for CBOT Ethanol Futures

Cindy Zimmerman

CBOT The Chicago Board of Trade has announced that FCStone has become an electronic market maker for the CBOT’s Ethanol futures contract.

According to a CBOT release, Senior Vice President of Business Development, Robert D. Ray said, “FCStone brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the CBOT’s Ethanol complex, which we believe has become the benchmark for domestic ethanol prices. Ethanol processors and investors have already noted the improved liquidity that FCStone has brought to our market, and we are committed to working with FCStone and the rest of the biofuels industry to create

FCStone is a broad-based commodity risk management and trading company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa.

Ethanol, News

Developing More Crops For Ethanol

Cindy Zimmerman

Ceres The head of energy crop company Ceres told the National Academy of Sciences this week that biotechnology-based innovations across the biofuels production chain will bring the cost of a new generation of cellulosic biofuels down significantly, while vastly increasing supply.

According to a company release, Ceres president and CEO Richard Hamilton said, “Biofuels produced from dedicated energy crops will be able to compete economically with gasoline, but the industry will need support early on to get the first several cellulosic biorefineries built.”

Hamiliton made a presentation to the academy’s Government-University-Industry Research Roundtable.

Cellulosic, Ethanol, News

Ethanol Track Talk

Cindy Zimmerman

Nascar General Motors has been actively encouraging NASCAR to make the switch to ethanol for some time now, especially since the IndyCar Series has now gone to 100 percent ethanol and the American LeMans Series has adopted a 10 percent blend.

The Associated Press reports there is more talk on the track this year about switching to ethanol.

“Without a doubt, I think we should look into it,” driver Jeff Burton said. “Although our impact on environmental issues is probably very, very small from an actual use standpoint, from a marketing standpoint, we could have a major impact.”

Driver Kyle Petty says NASCAR’s marketing horsepower might drive alternative fuels into the mainstream, helping consumers get over the image of hippies tinkering with their 1980s Mercedes to make them run on vegetable oil. “I think once you start seeing alternative fuels show up in places like racing and places where you least expect them, then you don’t think about that guy with the Volkswagen van that runs off of whatever,” Petty said.

Ethanol, News, Racing

I Love Ethanol Song

Chuck Zimmerman

Bob DinneenThe National Ethanol Conference is now over and saying goodbye was RFA President/CEO, Bob Dinneen. Next year’s Conference will be held in Orlando, FL so be sure to plan ahead early to make sure you participate in this industry-leading event.

Although I don’t have the video (I’ll try to get a copy) I do have the audio from the final video that Bob showed. It’s a video supplied by Ron Fagen, Fagen, Inc. It’s actually a music video so when you listen just imagine what pictures go with it. I’m guessing the song is titled, “I Love Ethanol.” It starts out with a little bit of IRL race car sound so give it a few seconds to develop.

You can listen to the song here: Listen to MP3 File I Love Ethanol (5 min MP3)

Don’t forget that you can see all my photos from the Conference with this link: 2007 National Ethanol Conference Photo Album. If you haven’t checked it out, then you can see a lot more at the National Ethanol Conference Blog.

Audio, Ethanol, National Ethanol Conference

Economic Analysis on the Impact of U.S. Ethanol Industry

Chuck Zimmerman

Dr. John UrbanchukTo get a complete understanding about the Ethanol Tax Incentive, attendees at the National Ethanol Conference heard this morning from Dr. John Urbanchuk, Director, LECG, LLC.

He started out talking about how work needs to be done to renew the Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit (VEETC) in a couple years. He talks about how the ethanol industry is in its infant stage still and this type of incentive is very important. He also reminded attendees about how many incentives are offered to the mature oil industry.

You can listen to his remarks here: Listen to MP3 File John Urbanchuk Remarks (16 min MP3)

Dr. Urbanchuk is also the author of a new economic analysis on the impact of the U.S. ethanol industry. The report shows that in 2006 the industry is providing the federal government with a sound return on its investment. According to the analysis, ‘Contribution of the Ethanol Industry to the Economy of the United States,’ (pdf file) the federal government received tax revenues of $2.7 billion simply from the construction and operation of ethanol biorefineries. The tax revenue generated exceeded the amount of money the federal government provided in tax incentives to oil refiners who use ethanol.

Audio, Ethanol, National Ethanol Conference, News

Rep. Hulshof’s Capitol Hill View

Chuck Zimmerman

Rep. Kenny HulshofCongressman from Missouri, Kenny Hulshof, (R-MO) was on stage today at the National Ethanol Conference as part of the session on how things look on Capitol Hill for the 110th Congress.

Hulshof said that he might get in trouble as a Republican by saying it, but he said that he thinks agriculture will fare well with Rep. Peterson at the helm of the House Agriculture Committee.

Hulshof urged attendees to make their voice known and take advantage of the accessibility of their elected leaders. He’s excited about a resurgence in rural America.

You can listen to his remarks here: Listen to MP3 File Rep. Kenny Hulshof Remarks (14 min MP3)

Audio, Ethanol, National Ethanol Conference, News

Capitol Hill View by Rep. Peterson

Chuck Zimmerman

Rep. Collin PetersonThis morning at the National Ethanol Conference we got the view from Capitol Hill as two of our Congressmen provided their thoughts on the legislative agenda for the 110th Congress.

First up was Representative Collin Peterson (D-MN). He serves as Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee.

Peterson started out mentioning the farm bill and the challenges presented by the successes in agriculture, especially in crops like corn. He also talks about how the livestock industry is making its concerns known on the Hill regarding feed costs.

You can listen to his remarks here: Listen to MP3 File Rep. Collin Peterson Remarks (16 min MP3)

Audio, Ethanol, National Ethanol Conference, News

Biodiesel… This Year’s Ethanol

John Davis

As I’ve talked about before on this blog, one of the keys to biodiesel being a success is it being financially viable. This article in the Financial Times Deutschland (Germany) has one expert predicting that biodiesel could see the results ethanol has recently seen:

Biodiesel could be “this year’s ethanol” in the view of Leigh Goering, portfolio manager for the natural resources fund at Chilton Investment Company.

A recent survey by an energy and utilities research firm suggests that biodiesel could soon join ethanol as one of the most important alternative fuels, saying the global market for biodiesel is poised for explosive growth in the next 10 years.

That means more biodiesel stations, plants, and supplers… and all this seems to be adding up to some major investment opportunities that some major players seem to be cashing in on:

All the activity has made biodiesel a key area of investment for fund managers and other investors. They have been funding the growing number of plants and refineries as well as driving robust merger and acquisition activity within the sector. Goldman Sachs, for example, last year invested more than $1.5bn in alternative energies and clean technologies worldwide.

Biodiesel, International