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Electronics retailer REX Stores Corporation of Dayton, Ohio has invested $14 million in Millennium Ethanol to build an ethanol producing facility in Marion, South Dakota.

Fagen, Inc. of Granite Falls, Minnesota is providing design, engineering, procurement and construction services for the plant. The plant is expected to begin ethanol production in early 2008 and will have a design capacity of 100 million gallons of ethanol and 320,000 tons of dried distillers grains per year. Millennium has reached an agreement with Archer Daniels Midland Company to market the ethanol.

Stuart Rose, REX Stores’ Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “We are delighted to be moving forward with this investment in the Millennium ethanol production facility. Millennium was organized and is owned by over 900 South Dakota investors, including FREMAR FARMERS COOPERATIVE INC., which includes over 1,700 farmer members. Our participation in Millennium is consistent with our strategy to invest in farmer-owned projects.”

Read more.

Broin Companies has announced plans for an ethanol plant near Glenville, Minn.

Glenville is located less than 10 miles southeast of Albert Lea, Minn., which is home to EXOL, a separate Broin managed facility that came on-line in August 1999 and operates at 45 million gallons per year. The new 60 million gallon per year Glenville Ethanol project will consume 21 million bushels of locally grown corn and produce 178,000 tons of premium Dakota Gold Enhanced Nutrition Distillers Products™.

Read release from Broin.

In a press conference on Wednesday, President Bush noted the amazing growth in ethanol this year.

“I’m pleased with the fact that we’ve gone from about a billion gallons of ethanol to over five billion gallons of ethanol in a very short period of time,” Bush said.

According to the Renewable Fuels Association, by the time the year comes to a close, the U.S. will have used more than 5 billion gallons of ethanol. That’s 25 percent more than called for in the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) that went into effect at the beginning of the year.

The new Undersecretary of Agriculture for Farm and Foreign Trade mentioned ethanol in his first meeting with reporters on Wednesday. Mark Keenum noted that there are now 110 ethanol refineries on line.

“And we’ve got about 50 or so refineries that are in the process of being constructed,” said Keenum. “When they come on line we’re going to be right at nine billion gallons.”

USDA chief economist Keith Collins said Wednesday that a record two billion bushels of corn was made into ethanol this year. “Many people in the industry are expecting that corn going to ethanol will increase by in the order of a billion bushels in 2007.”

2006 will be remembered as the year ethanol came of age.

The Renewable Fuels Association put together a list of important events for ethanol in 2006:

January 1 – The Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) takes effect. The program is implemented under the default guidelines as the full program is developed.

January 31 – During the State of the Union Address, President Bush declares, “America is addicted to oil.”

February 20-22 – National Ethanol Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada.

April 25 – President Bush addresses the Renewable Fuels Association and others in the renewable fuels industry at the Renewable Fuels Summit 2006.

May 5 – Gasoline refiners complete voluntary elimination of MTBE from the market.

May 25 – The nation’s 100th ethanol biorefinery opens in Iowa.

May 27 – The Indianapolis 500 runs on a 10 percent ethanol blend, representing the first change in fuel in more than 30 years. In 2007, the entire Indy Racing League, including the Indy 500, will run on 100 percent ethanol.

May 29 – The Renewable Fuels Association rings the opening bell on the NASDAQ stock exchange in New York City.

August 8 – The Renewable Fuels Standard celebrates its one-year anniversary with no fewer than 29 new ethanol biorefineries under construction since the bill was passed.

September 9 – The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) releases its proposed rule to fully implement the Renewable Fuels Standard.

October 10-12 – For the first time, three cabinet members and the President of the United States speak from the same stage about the importance of renewable fuels in America’s energy future.

November 14 – Big 3 automakers, General Motors, Ford and DaimlerChrysler meet with President Bush and pledge to make half of new vehicles manufactured FFVs by the end of the decade.

December 9 – Mark “The Flying Farmer” Thomas is awarded his sixth IHRA Alcohol Funny Car World Championship running on 100 percent ethanol.

December 10 – Congress extends the tax credit offset on imported ethanol to January 1, 2009.

Expect more in 2007.

Despite increased demand for ethanol in the U.S., imports declined in both September and October of this year, according to preliminary data supplied by the federal Energy Information Administration.

October imports of the plant-derived gasoline additive stood at 1.505 million barrels, down from 2.194 million barrels in September, and down from the record-high 3.203 million barrels in August. The October level is also below June and July import levels.

Brazil provided 824,000 barrels, down from 1.318 million barrels in September. Most of the Brazilian barrels were bound for the East Coast of the remainder, 105,000 barrels went to Houston and 101,000 barrels went to the West Coast.

Other suppliers of ethanol for the U.S. include China, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Canada and Trinidad.

Read Dow Jones report.