U.S. Ethanol Facilities Cautiously Resume Production, Some Plants Still Idle in Nine States

---

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--While some of the larger U.S. ethanol producers resume production, many of the smaller players continue to cautiously watch the market before going back online. Big players like POET LLC, Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE:VLO) and Abengoa S.A. have put plants back into operation. However, smaller producers in nine states remain in "hot idle," which means their plants are able to resume operations but are not producing.

NEDAK is not currently taking in corn at its plant in Atkinson, Nebraska. Other Nebraska plants not producing include the Aventine facility in Aurora. But in Iowa, the largest ethanol-producing state, no plants are currently idle.

Most remaining open plants have workers performing maintenance and facility upgrade tasks. But ethanol production won't likely resume until after corn for 2013 is harvested in late August or September. It is estimated that more than 2 billion gallons of fuel ethanol capacity is sitting idle.

If the Renewable Fuels Standard increases to a 15% blend as planned, the ethanol industry could be facing trouble if the corn crop this year is not near or above record-breaking harvest levels.

Second-generation producers also are cautious as they move forward. Cellulosic producers have spent millions developing technology over the past six years and have started building commercial-scale plants. With no room for corn ethanol production, second-generation producers are entering a saturated market.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.