POET buys Ethanol plant in Cloverdale

Ethanol Producer to Upgrade Putnam County Production Facility CLOVERDALE, Ind. (June 30, 2010) – POET Biorefining announced today that it has purchased a production facility here, creating up to 40 new jobs by 2011. The company, which is among the largest producers of ethanol in the world, will invest more than $30 million to modify the former Altra Biofuels facility to produce 90 million gallons annually. POET will also produce Dakota Gold dried distillers grains for livestock feed at the Cloverdale site. “Biofuels continue to be a vibrant industry here in Indiana and we’re glad that POET is making another commitment to Indiana and its workers,” said Lt. Governor Becky Skillman. “These new jobs and the use of this existing facility will be a tremendous boost for Putnam County.” POET, which employs more than 1,500 people throughout the Midwest, plans to begin hiring production and supervisory staff at the plant in the next 90 days. The company anticipates being at full production in the next nine months, after facility upgrades are completed. POET chief executive officer, Jeff Broin, said the productive agriculture community in and around Cloverdale, coupled with POET’s unique processes and technology, will make POET Biorefining – Cloverdale a leader in the industry. “We have been looking at potential acquisitions for some time,” Broin said. “This plant, in this community, will be a perfect fit for what we do at POET.” POET established its first ethanol production plant in Scotland, S.D. in 1987 and had an annual production capacity of one million gallons. Currently, the Sioux Falls, S.D.-based company operates 26 plants in seven states, with a combined annual production capacity of more than 1.6 billion gallons of ethanol. POET operates ethanol and feed production operations in North Manchester, Portland and Alexandria, Ind. The Indiana Economic Development Corporation will transfer existing biofuel production credits to the company based on the company’s job-creation plans. The Putnam County Council will consider transferring additional existing property tax abatement from the Altra facility.
“Putnam County is pleased to have POET join our community through its acquisition of the ethanol plant at Cloverdale,” said Darrel Thomas, president of the Putnam County Council. “The benefits to our agri-business community, the local tax base, the South Putnam school district, and the creation of good paying jobs are welcome and greatly appreciated.” Bioenergy is making a significant contribution to the Hoosier economy with the current production in ethanol and its byproducts worth $1.3 billion at current prices, according to the Indiana State Department of Agriculture. Indiana’s ethanol plants have a combined production capacity of nearly $1.1 billion gallons and require 423 million bushels of corn annually. About POET POET, the largest ethanol producer in the world, is a leader in biorefining through its efficient, vertically integrated approach to production. The 22-year-old company produces more than 1.6 billion gallons of ethanol annually from 26 production facilities nationwide. POET recently started up a pilot-scale cellulosic ethanol plant, which uses corn cobs as feedstock, and will commercialize the process in Emmetsburg, Iowa. For more information, visit www.poet.com.