Plants change ownership

Several ethanol plants changed ownership in late 2013. During the final quarter of the year, Green Plains Energy Inc. announced that it completed the acquisition of two 110 MMgy ethanol plants previously owned by BioFuel Energy Corp., including the Pioneer Trail Energy plant in Wood River, Neb., and the Buffalo Lake Energy facility in Fairmont, Minn. The plants were purchased from an entity comprised of BioFuel Energy’s lender group. 

Another plant in Minnesota is also expected to be under new ownership soon. The shareholders of Central MN Ethanol Co-op voted in late 2013 to approve an asset purchase agreement for the sale of CMEC’s 54 MMgy ethanol plant in Little Falls, Minn., to U.K.-based biochemical producer Green Biologics. The two companies first signed a letter of intent in September. The transaction is expected to close in late this year. 

In Wisconsin, the Fox River Valley Ethanol plant resumed operations during the fourth quarter. Ace Ethanol LLC purchased the 52 MMgy plant from Utica Energy in August. The facility had been idle since September 2012.