Wall Street came to the small town of Albert City in northwest Iowa last Wednesday, February 7, when US BioEnery Corporation celebrated the opening of it's first ethanol plant in Iowa and it's third ethanol plant in the United States.

Iowa Governor Chet Culver attended the grand opening and was the featured speaker at the event, which took place inside a huge steel building that will hold distillers dried grains produced by the new plant. Several hundred people gathered to hear the governor's speech. The governor also participated in a special remote closing bell ceremony of the Nasdaq Stock Exchange to celebrate US BioEnergy's recent public stock offering.

With TV cameras present and a special stage and lighting, the daily closing bell was broadcast live via satellite back to Times Square in New York City. Officials of the stock exchange were present on location in Albert City and joined with officials of US BioEnergy on the stage at the plant. "It's a great opportunity to highlight ethanol, its importance to U.S. energy security and to promote US BioEnergy," said Bruce Aust, executive vice president of Nasdaq.

Wall Street interested in ethanol

The event marked the growing interest Wall Street investors have in ethanol plants, once owned mainly by farmers. Other publicly traded companies that own or are building ethanol plants in Iowa include Archer Daniels Midland, Great Plains Renewable Energy and VeraSun.

US BioEnergy is listed on the Nasdaq and sold $150 million in stock last year. The company is the second largest producer of ethanol in the nation, behind ADM, which produces more than a billion gallons of ethanol and is currently expanding its production by 275 million gallons. US BioEnergy produces 250 million gallons per year currently.

The 100-million gallon per year plant at Albert City began producing ethanol in December 2006, said Gordon Ommen, CEO of US BioEnergy. The plant employs 45 people and will produce 320,000 tons of distillers grains per year.

Company is building plant at Grinnell

US BioEnergy currently owns and operates three ethanol plants, including the Albert City plant. It has five additional ethanol plants under construction. Upon completion of these plants, the company will own and operate or have an interest in eight plants with combined expected ethanol production capacity of 650 million gallons per year.

The three plants the company has that are already operating are in Albert City, Iowa; Central City, Nebraska; and Lake Odessa, Michigan. Plants under construction are at Ord, Nebraska; Hankinson, North Dakota; Dyersville, Iowa; Janesville, Minnesota; and Grinnell, Iowa.

The Grinnell plant just began construction in February 2007 and is expected to be completed in second quarter of 2008. It is a 50-50 joint venture with Big River Resources, which has a 50-million gallon plant at Burlington, Iowa.

Cenex Harvest States is part owner

US BioEnergy's ethanol is sold through Provista, a 50-50 partnership with CHS Inc., formerly known as Cenex Harvest States.

CHS, a major supplier of ethanol-blended gasoline, owns 22% of US BioEnergy, said Ommen. Ommen controls 22% of US BioEnergy stock, and Fagen Inc., which builds ethanol plants for U.S. BioEnergy and others, also owns a 22% stake. The balance of the US BioEnergy stock is owned by individuals.

US BioEnergy was formed four years ago when Ommen co-founded the business with Ron Fagen. CHS was brought in as an equal partner because of its truck fleet and major railroad access to transport and distribute ethanol.

Nasdaq takes its closing bell ceremonies on the road several times a year. "Bringing Nasdaq to Albert City for a closing bell ceremony symbolizes US BioEnergy's connections to Main Street and Wall Street," Ommen told the gathering. "We brought New York to rural Iowa this afternoon."

Iowa Governor welcomes new plant

"US BioEnergy is helping us do what I believe we must do as a state, and that is take control of our energy future," said Iowa Governor Chet Culver. "I have called on Iowans to explore the next generation energy frontier, and plants like this one are on that cutting edge. It's time for Iowa to win the race to become the energy capital of the world and break free from our dependence on foreign oil."

"Led by companies like this one, Iowa will become the Silicon Valley of the Midwest," he said. "It is refreshing to see the Nasdaq bell in Iowa and recognize the high-tech future that our state is building around the next generation renewable energy economy."