POET to Boost Annual Ethanol Production Capacity by 25M Gal
Source: By Molly White, OPIS • Posted: Tuesday, January 19, 2016
The company said output at its Hanlontown, Iowa, will rise to 64 million gal/year from 58 million gal/yr and its Hudson, S.D., facility, will boost production to 65 million gal/yr from 58 million/yr. OPIS reported on the Hudson expansion plans in late December. POET also said it will raise production at its Caro, Mich., plant to 67 million gal/yr from 55 million gal/year now.
“POET is always looking for ways to expand production capabilities and improve our processes across our entire network,” said Jeff Lautt, POET president and COO. “Not only will the expansions allow these three biorefineries to produce more ethanol, but each will also be expanding their coproduct volume as well.”
Each location filed expansion permits and will be producing at the permitted Renewable Identification Number (RIN) level.
“We set production records at 17 of our biorefineries in 2015,” Lautt added.
“This industry is ready to give drivers even more opportunities to use clean- burning, American-made biofuel.”
POET’s announcement comes as U.S. ethanol production is approaching record levels. The U.S. Energy Information Administration on Wednesday said output was
1.003 million b/d in the week ended Jan. 8, 7,000 b/d, or 0.7%, above the previous week, and hit the million-barrel-day mark for the third time since mid- November to land just 0.5% short of the all-time high reported for the week of Nov. 20.
The agency also said U.S. ethanol stocks rose by 246,000 bbl in the week ended Jan. 8, up 1.17% from the week before. Over the past weeks, nearly 1.2 million bbl has been added to inventory, bringing the amount in storage to 21.345 million bbl, a 45-week high. Against the same time last year, U.S. ethanol inventory is up 5.52%.
POET operates 27 biofuel plants with a combined capacity of in excess of 1.7 billion gal/yr.