The renewal of the biodiesel tax incentive at the end of 2010 led to record production this year and a renewed optimism for the industry. Meanwhile, the ethanol industry saw the approval of E15 in newer vehicles at the beginning of the year, although it has yet to make it to the pump, and the end of 2011 means the end of the Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit and associated import tariff. 2011 was also a great year at the races, with NASCAR fueled with 15% American Ethanol.

The most popular renewable news stories on Domestic Fuel this year included:
Newt Gingrich wows IRFA Summit
Future of Ethanol Tax Policy
Renewable Energy surpasses Nuclear
Joule wins WSJ Award
Study Shows E15 OK in Older Vehicles
Royal Wedding Car Runs on E85
Wind Industry takes steps to Protect Wildlife

Traffic was up another 3.5% in 2011 on Domestic Fuel with a total of almost 325,000 unique visitors. We also now have nearly 1700 followers on Twitter (@DomesticFuel). There were over 1320 posts on Domestic Fuel this year, including 140 with audio interviews, podcasts and recorded press conferences. We covered the Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit, National Biodiesel Conference, National Ethanol Conference, Advanced Biofuels Leadership Conference, USDA and EPA Tour of REG, NASCAR STP 300 in Chicago, STP 400 in Kansas City, Iowa Corn Indy 250, Garnett Ethanol Boat Race, Fuel Ethanol Workshop and the RFA Sponsorship of the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.

As we enter a new Domestic Fuel era, we wish all of our readers, sponsors and friends a healthy, happy, prosperous and blessed new year!

This slick 10×15 wall calendar includes dates for all the major ag-related and biofuels events in 2012, along with photos each month from the 2011 events that we covered. There’s photos from the National Biodiesel Conference, National Ethanol Conference, Commodity Classic, Iowa Corn Indy 250, American Ethanol NASCAR, Farm Progress Show and much more.

We ordered a limited number of the calendars to give to some of our clients for Christmas, but then discovered that there are lots of other folks out there who would like to get a copy, so we are ordering more and offering them for sale.

For just $20 each plus $2 shipping/handling, you can get your very own 2012 Ag Events calendar here:

Order 2012 ZimmComm Ag Events Calendar.

The REAP program is currently helping retailers in rural communities install E85 pumps and blender pumps which offer consumers various blends of ethanol that oftentimes include E20, E30 or E40.

“I am excited to receive this honor that recognizes the work that USDA is doing to help our nation develop home-grown energy that creates jobs, helps to break our dependence on foreign oil, and moves our nation towards a clean energy economy,” said Tonsager.

Merle Anderson was the founder and first president of ACE and currently serves as Chairman Emeritus of the ACE board of directors. Brian Jennings, ACE executive VP added, “His work in developing blender pump infrastructure has been tireless and Dallas has always been a champion for the ethanol industry. It means a lot for rural America to have Dallas working in Washington on behalf of agriculture and the ethanol industry,” Jennings said.

Over the last few years, POET has developed and tested a new process that eliminates the need for antibiotics to control fermentation disruptions. The testing was done with participation of egg-farming customers and support from the United Egg Producers (UEP).

“POET partnered with UEP in a recently completed study showing that adding DDGS to layer diets can dramatically reduce ammonia emissions from the farm,” said Chad Gregory, Senior Vice President at United Egg Producers. “Their antibiotic-free process is another example that demonstrates POET’s commitment to animal agriculture.”

Mark Giesemann, Ph.D., Director of Technical Services at POET Nutrition added, “Since it was introduced more than 15 years ago, Dakota Gold has built a reputation for consistency and quality. “We had to ensure that any adjustments in our process didn’t compromise that reputation. After a few years of testing and development, we’ve found that the DDGS from the antibiotic-free process are of the highest quality.”

“Bioheat and biodiesel demand in the Northeast is rapidly expanding due to progressive state and local energy policy and the Renewable Fuels Standard. As America’s largest biodiesel producer, we are committed to focusing our nationwide distribution and logistics resources in this region and the addition of Predaris to our team is evidence of that commitment,” said REG Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Gary Haer.

“Predaris’s extensive experience in the region and knowledge of the biodiesel industry allow him to effectively partner with down-stream supply chain partners in making Bioheat and biodiesel more widely available,” he added.

Prior to joining REG, Predaris spent nearly 15 years with Sprague Energy Corporation in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. He has also served on the board of directors for several state oil and heat councils and associations.

The gasifier underwent several performance tests with multiple feedstocks including but not limited to refused-derived fuel (RDF), tire derived fuel mixed with RDF, wood chips, wheat straw, switchgrass, and corn stover. Combined with ICM’s thermal oxidizer and heat sink, the WESP 2-F system cleans removes all particulate matter as well as acid gases from a variety of fuel sources and meets all levels of emission control requirements.

“We’re thrilled with the recent commercial deployment of our biomass gasifier technology, as it allows us to offer our waste-to-energy system on a global level,” said ICM CEO Dave Vander Griend.”Recognizing the strength of collaborative partnerships, ICM is pleased to work with EISENMANN and their WESP technology to enhance our biomass gasifier applications.”

As the date approaches, ICM has publicly stated that they are continuing to offer corn oil extraction solutions for the ethanol industry. Earlier this summer, the company filed a non-provisional patent application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for its Advanced Oil System and is also offering its Tricenter Oil Separation System.

“We offer products, technology and services to ethanol plants that are designed to increase the revenue to the plant from each bushel of corn,” said Chris Mitchell, Executive Vice-President of ICM. “Our focus is on the success and viability of our customers. Our oil extraction offerings are examples of this focus.”

Mitchell continued, “We offer the systems on a non-royalty bearing basis with a strong return on investment for the customer. We also offer full indemnification from patent infringement as part of each sale. While we prefer to focus on the benefits of ICM’s technology, we feel compelled to respond to a press release issued by GreenShift Corporation on July 25, 2011.”

According to ICM, the press release pointed to a notice of allowance from the USPTO for GreenShift’s patent application number 11/241,231, titled “Method of Processing Ethanol Byproducts and Related Subsystems,” and the company made “legal characterizations and conclusions with respect to the action of USPTO.”

Brian Burris, General Counsel of ICM, stated in an ICM press release that they are confident that the GreenShift patents will be declared invalid and stress that ICM’s current corn oil technologies fall outside all patent claims. “While our company policy is not to comment on matters in current litigation, ICM felt it is necessary to clarify to the industry statements made by GreenShift,” added Burris.

“The strength of Butamax’s patent portfolio is a testament to our company’s innovation capability and is a critical asset as we commercialize the most significant new fuel molecule since ethanol,” said Paul Beckwith, CEO of Butamax.

Peter Matrai, COO of Butamax added, “Butamax’s comprehensive intellectual property estate offers licensees a unique commercial opportunity underpinned by a fully proprietary technology package.”

In other Butamax news, they announced the filing of a second patent infringement against Gevo, Inc. for its unlawful use of Butamax biobutanol technology. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S District Court in the District of Delaware and is based on Gevo’s infringement of U.S. patent no. 7,993,889 that was granted to Butamax just this week.

Beckwith said of the patent infringement, “The success of any new technology start-up is dependent on protection of innovation. It is our obligation to assert our intellectual property rights in order to defend value for our partners and to protect the viability of this emerging industry.”

“The Michigan Agri-Business Association wants to shine a light on the many agricultural businesses that are doing the right thing, and keeping Michigan’s natural resources strong and healthy,” MABA President Jim Byrum said. “Conservation, sustainability and energy efficiency are a way of life for these Michigan businesses, saving both money and resources. These businesses are good for both our industry and Michigan’s future, and we want to highlight their efforts.”

To reduce water use while improving water quality, POET Biorefining – Caro uses a total water recovery system to eliminate wastewater discharge and a waste heat recovery system that recycles both heat and water. It uses the Load Toad DDGS loader to get more product onto each rail car and conducts a recycling program.

David Gloer, GM of POET Biorefining – Caro added, “We produce renewable fuel, so reducing waste and energy use is a natural focus for POET Biorefining – Caro,” General Manager David Gloer said. “It’s a great honor to be recognized by the MABA for those efforts.”

Prior to joining Butamax, Peter spent five years with BP Biofuels where he was as a Strategy Advisor in London. In this role he was a key contributor to the development and implementation of BP Biofuels’ global strategy. Most recently, he led the development of a sustainable and scalable ligno-cellulosic biofuel business opportunity for BP in North America. In addition, Matrai’s has substantial experience in finance, mergers and acquisitions, emerging market investments, asset management, diplomacy, and public-private partnerships.

“Peter has an impressive track record for development and execution of commercial strategy. His deep understanding of biofuels, coupled with his experience of building successful new ventures, make him a powerful addition to the Butamax management team,” said Paul Beckwith, Chief Executive Officer of Butamax.

“We are very excited to partner with Amyris, a leading renewable products company, to develop innovative polymer products with Biofene,” said Yasuhiro Yamamoto, director and senior executive officer of Kuraray. “We are confident the new Biofene polymer products will become important additions to our product portfolio and be an integral part of our growth strategy.”

Amyris CEO John Melo added, “We are committed to bringing innovative, high-performing and sustainable products to the polymers market. Partnering with an industry leader like Kuraray allows us to expand the use of Biofene to produce high-performance polymers as well as strengthen our timely and successful route to market.”

During the past few months, Butamax says it has progressed in its commercialization and is preparing to launch biobutanol as a renewable transportation fuel. With Beckwith’s expertise in bringing new products to market, he was chosen to lead the team. He has 27 years of experience in the fuel sector and led the market introduction of multiple major new fuels products in the United States and Europe, together with development of BP’s long-term global fuels product strategy. Prior to this promotion, Beckwith was a member of the Butamax leadership team and in this role led development of the company’s strategy.

“I want to thank Tim for his many contributions over the last two years in establishing Butamax as a leader in biofuels and wish him every happiness,” said Butamax Board Chairman Jan Koninckx. “Tim’s leadership during the formation and early development of the company has resulted in the generation of great passion and enthusiasm for biobutanol and Butamax. He has positioned the company for the next stage in the company’s commercialization and hands over to Paul Beckwith, who, with unrivalled experience of bringing new fuels products to market, is ideally suited to lead Butamax as we enter the commercial launch phase.”

“Expanding our agribusiness operations to further diversify our revenues and cash flows remains a priority for us in 2011,” stated Todd Becker, President and Chief Executive Officer. “The close proximity to our ethanol production and grain facilities in southwest Iowa makes this elevator a solid fit within our business platform. Combining this acquisition with our existing storage capacity and the announced expansion of our Tennessee grain assets, we will have 35 million bushels of grain storage capacity within our agribusiness segment by this fall’s harvest. We continue to look for additional acquisition opportunities to grow our agribusiness segment.”

“We look forward to combining Capstone’s interactive web conferences and dynamic communities with the existing resource base of PSI’s Definitive Solar Library—an online library that is under development and dedicated exclusively to the solar industry,” said Rick Borry, co-founder of Capstone and chief technology officer at PSI.

Michael Gorton, CEO and Chairman of PSI added that with the favorable and competitive cost of photovoltaics he has complete confidence that his company’s model will be a “unifying force” for making solar energy available worldwide.

ICM says their Advanced Oil System solves some of the current yield issues with corn oil extraction technologies due to emulsification, an industry wide challenge to achieving consistent high oil recovery rates. The company’s improved technology delivers a much higher conversion rate than currently possible with first-gen technologies. The Advanced Oil System consists of separate skid mounted units that can be installed at plants without oil extraction technology, or as an add-on to plants that already have invested in ICM’s first generation corn oil extraction equipment. They are deploying their first commercial Advanced Oil System at an ICM-designed 110 MGY ethanol plant. The system was commissioned last week and in operation.

Chris Mitchell, Executive Vice-President of ICM said, “We have focused our efforts on developing solutions that deliver quick payback and ongoing value-added co-product streams to the renewable energy industry. We believe our competitive advantage comes from providing our customers with a competitive advantage of their own—the highest-yielding and most reliable oil separation technology available.”

The Advanced Oil System design and method falls outside of all patent claims of GreenShift Corporation’s patent, according to Brian Burris, general counsel for ICM. “Our patent pending system does not separate oil directly from the concentrated thin stillage. ICM’s system implements special processing to release oil from an emulsion concentrate, which results in a higher recovery of corn oil from the ethanol process.” ICM now has two differentiated solutions that allow the operator to control the quantity of oil removed from the process: the Tricanter Oil Separation System and the Advanced Oil System.

“Europe and France have made unconditional sustainability commitments, and this is driving fast-moving commercial algae projects for us in France,” said Riggs Eckelberry, OriginOil CEO. “We are committed to supplying our technology, know how and integrated supplier network to help Ennesys get these projects up and running quickly.”

The second project will focus on marine fuel applications. ITSASOA is collaborating with Ennesys on a plan to absorb agricultural runoff using algae that will then converted to fuel for fishing vessels. ITSASOA is an advanced biofuels program financed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries and the European Union.

“Algae in France has taken off with the new eco-building law that forces large developers to innovate without delay on their new projects,” added Pierre Tauzinat, Ennesys president. “Due to its many benefits, algae is more productive than solar panels, and will generate continuing jobs here in France. That’s a huge benefit over solar, which is often manufactured in other countries and generates few jobs once installed.”

“We are delighted that the tender has been successful and we can move on to the process of integrating Danisco into DuPont,” said DuPont Chair & CEO Ellen Kullman. “Danisco’s attractive specialty food ingredients businesses and Genencor’s leading industrial enzymes complement DuPont’s own Nutrition & Health and Applied BioSciences offerings. This combination will create an industry leader in industrial biosciences and nutrition and health.”

Ellen continued, “These businesses will work together to drive sustainable growth and market-driven innovation by linking agriculture, nutrition and advanced materials through industrial biosciences. In addition, the R&D combination of DuPont, Danisco and Genencor will enable us to further respond to global megatrends and help provide for the food, energy and protection needs of a growing population.”

Danisco Chairman Jorgen Tandrup added, “We are very pleased that a vast majority of Danisco shareholders have accepted DuPont’s offer, and the two companies may now begin to move forward together. DuPont and Danisco share cultures based in exceptional science and research capabilities. Our combined strengths in biosciences and nutrition and health will deliver innovative new offerings for customers worldwide, while helping to grow these businesses in ways that will benefit employees, shareholders and the communities in which we serve. We look forward to this next exciting chapter of discovery and success for the joined companies.”

Most recently, Kautz was with Protec Fuel Management where she served as the director of development. In addition, she has more than 10 years experience working in the ethanol industry in various roles with several ethanol advocacy groups including the National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition and Growth Energy.

Dyadic Netherland’s General Manager, Dr. ir. Wim van der Wilden will guide the research with collaboration from Dr. Mark Alfenito, the President and CEO of EnGen Bio, an early stage biopharmaceutical company based in Redwood City, California. The research is anticipated to be completed in six to twelve months. All other terms of the research collaboration are confidential.

Mark Emalfarb, President and CEO of Dyadic added, “We are very pleased to have the opportunity to work with Sanofi Pasteur and EnGen Bio to further demonstrate the utility of our C1 technology for certain vaccine applications.

For the past four-and-a-half years, I’ve had the distinct pleasure of blogging about this nation’s and world’s efforts to wean itself from non-renewable energy. It’s been an absolutely fantastic experience, taking me down the blogging highway, sometimes from the comfort of my own living room chair. But, sadly, I will not be able to continue writing for this blog.

I have been offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to go to Afghanistan to help the Afghans start a radio journalism/production program, so they can get good information to the people of that country and not just what some mullah wants to tell them. Don’t worry about my safety; I’ll be warm and safe and dry in the cozy confines of Kandahar Air Base, protected by the finest collection of fighting men and women the world has ever seen. I only hope that my efforts will make their jobs a little easier and help Afghanistan recover from decades of war and strife.

In the meantime, I hope to check in from time to time and give you a glimpse of our efforts there.

I can’t tell you how much I have appreciated Chuck’s and Cindy’s efforts and opportunities they have afforded me. They are true friends. I also feel confident that between them and their pool of talented, sophisticated freelance journalists, they’ll continue to spread the good news of renewable energy.

I thank you for reading my posts and providing comments. Even when (and probably especially when) we disagreed, I think it made for some great conversation … the real key to solving this nation’s energy issues. Keep reading Domestic Fuel, and keep putting in that great feedback!

Until we see each other again, take care!

John

“We’re extremely pleased to announce the commercialization of our gasifier technology. We believe that ICM’s past experience in delivering technology to the renewable energy sector, coupled with our favorable reputation with lenders, makes the ICM gasification technology an extremely valuable and rare option for clients seeking gasification technology solutions,” said Dave Vander Griend, President and CEO of ICM.

Since 2009, ICM has successfully tested more than 13 feedstocks, processed 7,000 tons of biomass, and amassed more than 2,100 hours of operation. The various feedstocks tested include refuse-derived fuel (RDF) generated from municipal solid waste (MSW), tire-derived fuel (TDF) mixed with RDF, wood chips, pine bark, wheat straw, corn stover, chicken litter, switchgrass, automobile shredded residue (ASR) mixed with RDF, and other biomass/energy crops.

“It was critically important for ICM to invest heavily in a commercial-scale demonstration unit to prove the feedstock-flexible capabilities of this robust technology, which dates back to 1975, as well as to give potential customers and lenders the comfort and reassurance they need to finance waste-to-energy and biomass-to-energy projects,” added Tom Ranallo, Vice President of Operations for ICM.

In addition to producing syngas, ICM’s biomass gasification platform also has the ability to co-produce biochar, a type of charcoal, that has the ability to store carbon dioxide in the soil for thousands of years when buried.

“Our unique small distributive refining systems blueprint is perfectly matched to BioJet’s goal to increase international use of sustainable biofuel,” said Marty Oliver, president of ABI. “The refineries that BioJet will be able to place will help the aviation industry continue to find renewable sources of energy.”

Don Evans, chairman and CEO of ABI added, “The aviation industry continues to face increased regulations regarding emissions and demonstrated use of biofuel. BioJet’s use of the RWR System will increase the availability of aviation biofuel for commercial air carriers.”

Most recently, ABI completed a license agreement with Professor Roberts, who works in the biofuels program at NC State University. The partnership allows ABI to commercialize all patents and intellectual property related to Roberts’ work.

Mitch Hawkins, CEO of BioJet concluded, “We are committed to helping airlines increase their use of sustainable biofuel, and this technology will allow us to place refineries that will turn native feedstock into aviation biofuel. Avjet is one of the first companies to have the technology that allows for the creation of small, distributive refineries, and we are looking forward to implementing it at multiple locations world-wide.”

In tandem with the infusion of funds, Solix is changing its name to Solix BioSystems. The company says this name change better reflects its role as a leading provider of algae production systems.

“This new round of financing from current investors demonstrates their continued excitement and support for our progress,” said Joel Butler, Solix’s Chief Executive Officer. “Solix is poised to launch its first commercial AGS product into the market. With our focus on providing customers with algae production systems, Solix BioSystems better reflects the Company’s objectives.”

The award was established by FOE “to recognize leaders that promote dirty biofuels” – especially corn ethanol – and was won last year by then House Agriculture Committee chairman Collin Peterson (D-MN). The first year it was Monsanto CEO Hugh Grant. This year’s nominees also include Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), General Wesley Clark, and Secretary Tom Vilsack. It’s a great honor to be included in such company.

Here is what FOE has to say about us:

This dynamic duo are a pair of bloggers who lead the group ZimmComm New Media and provide a big platform for the ethanol industry’s talking points. Each day, on a series of blogs – hosted by the Zimmermans (DomesticFuel, AgWired ) or by the corn ethanol industry itself (CornCommentary) – Cindy and Chuck critique anyone who may disagree with the ethanol industry’s line while practically cutting and pasting press releases from industry lobby groups. The Zimmermans are unabashedly pro-industry, with clients such as Growth Energy, the Renewable Fuels Association, the National Biodiesel Board and Syngenta. What’s more, many of their employees are previous employees of the biofuels industry lobby groups like Growth Energy. Now — Friends of the Earth has nothing against a pro-industry website (in principle), but the problem with the Zimmermans is that on the surface they pretend to be “reporters,” when in fact they act as industry hacks.

Just a couple points of clarification. First, we have no employees. We have freelance writers who contribute to our websites and other freelancers who do other work for us. One of our freelancers did work for Growth Energy, she now works for Protec Fuel and while she continues to do work for us in other areas, she does very little posting at this time. Another freelancer, Joanna Schroeder, worked for EPIC when we got to know her, but she now has her own company and does work for a variety of clients, including us. You can find our more about us and our company on the About page.

We support and believe in the use of biofuels for our country, as well as other forms of alternative energy – and even utilizing more of our country’s own oil reserves. We are diametrically opposed to organizations and individuals who criticize and attack the people who produce this nation’s food, fiber, AND fuel. If that makes us biofools, then we are proud to be!

“We pioneered microbial production of isobutanol as a single fermentative product and we are pleased that the U.S. patent office has recognized our inventive contributions in this field again,” said Tim Potter, Butamax CEO. “This patent protected technology is important because it enables commercially viable production rates.”

Just last December, Butamax was awarded a patent that covered various recombinant microorganisms, including yeast host cells, expressing classes of enzymes that catalyze the metabolic pathway for producing biobutanol at commercial scale. According to the company, the patent also protects methods for producing biobutanol as well as the fermentation medium in which the biobutanol is produced.

Butamax Vice President and Chief Counsel, Christine Lhulier, said, “We are the only company to hold issued patents for this technology. By obtaining and protecting our intellectual property portfolio, we ensure the highest sustainable value for our customers and licensees. Because our technology is not dependent on on-going royalties to multitudes of third party technology providers, Butamax is able to provide higher financial returns for converting ethanol capacity to biobutanol production.”

Lhulier also noted that Butamax is the only company to own all of its intellectual property. She said they are also the only company that can offer ethanol producers a technology that is clear of third party rights and obligations.

“We are uniquely positioned to provide unfettered access to the most advanced technology for producing biobutanol. We will continue to secure for our customers and licensees the ability to modify their production capacity to ensure sustainable growth for the biofuels industry,” concluded Lhulier.

“OriginOil will continue to innovate, it’s in our DNA,” said Riggs Eckelberry, OriginOil CEO. “Meanwhile, a number of our technologies have matured to the point where we need to focus on fast-track commercialization. This includes seeking independent validations, combining with other systems in the process chain, aggressively developing our intellectual property, signing distribution partnerships, and the many other activities involved in commercialization of a new technology.”

Prior to joining OriginOil, Reep worked with the University of Southern California Stevens Institute for Innovation where he managed as many as 200 technology cases at one time. He also has experience managing government-private partnerships, including a major multi-agency technology transfer initiative with the Departments of Commerce, Energy, Interior, Agriculture, and the Environmental Protection Agency where the bio-project is still underway.

“I’m excited about the opportunity to lead the OriginOil technical team in what is sure to be an amazingly productive time for the company,” Reep said.

But this achievement is not near POET’s goal. With startup of systems at their biorefineries in Mitchell, S.D.; Ashton, Iowa; and Portland, Ind., the company is nearly halfway to its goal of saving 1 billion gallons of water annually by 2014, which would mean using 2.33 gallons of water per gallon of ethanol produced. POET’s water saving goal is one part of its company-wide sustainability initiative called “Ingreenuity.”

“I’m proud that in each of the 23 years we’ve been in business, we’ve been able to improve the environmental performance of ethanol production,” POET CEO Jeff Broin said. “Water is one of the most important resources on our planet. We will continue to find ways to maximize that resource and other resources in our ongoing work to be as efficient as we can be.”

Currently, 12 of POET’s 26 plants are running the system at full capacity, and another six are scheduled to come online this year. Total Water Recovery will also be running in their 27th plant, POET Biorefining – Cloverdale, which POET recently acquired and will start production later this month.

According to the company, in 2009, their plants used an average of three gallons of water per gallon of ethanol, which is an 80 percent decrease from when the company first produced ethanol in 1988. That average includes the alternative sources of water used at several POET plants. At POET Biorefining — Corning (Iowa) most of the water used for cooling comes from the Corning Waste Water Treatment Plant. One hundred percent of the water at POET Biorefining — Portland (Ind.) is recycled from a nearby quarry. POET Biorefining — Big Stone (S.D.) gets 80 percent of its water from the cooling ponds of an adjacent power plant and discharges it back to the power plant.

“Over his six-year career at POET, Jeff Lautt has continually taken on more and more of the daily operations of the company,” POET CEO Jeff Broin said. “I have full confidence that he will excel in this new role and help take POET to new heights.”

The change in leadership will allow Broin to focus his time and energy on long-term strategy for the company and well as the industry. “With more of the day-to-day operations in Jeff Lautt’s hands, I can invest more of my time in planning the future of POET and work on issues critical to the ethanol industry,” Broin said. “Many of the challenges POET faces are shared by the entire ethanol industry. As co-chairman of Growth Energy, I also look forward to working with others in the industry to face those challenges head-on.”

In his prior role, Lautt was responsible for all operational business units within POET. Of his new role, Lautt commented, “Under the leadership of Jeff Broin, POET has grown into a very successful company. Working with Jeff and the dedicated team at POET, I look forward to playing an even bigger role in future accomplishments.”

The Grand Opening begins at 9:30 am with public tours followed by a speaking program at 11:30 am to noon that includes POET CEO Jeff Broin and Lt. Gov. Becky Skillman along with Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis. At noon, lunch will be provided followed by additional public tours at 12:30 p.m. The event concludes at 2:30 pm. Media and the public are welcome to attend.

There is NO parking at the plant. Public parking is available at Martin Aggregates at 6252 US Hwy 231 South, Cloverdale, Ind. Buses will run continuously to and from the plant throughout the day.