Sioux Falls, SD – Great Plains Ethanol, LLC, located near Chancellor, SD and managed by Sioux Falls-based Broin Companies, today announced intentions to expand the ethanol production facility, doubling production from 50 to 100 million gallons per year.

Great Plains Ethanol, LLC began operations in March 2003 with a nameplate rate of 40 million gallons per year. Currently, the plant is running above design capacity producing 50 million gallons of ethanol annually. The plant designed and built by the Broin Companies, recently began operations using the patent-pending BPX™ ethanol production technology.

“We are excited about Great Plains’ potential expansion and its impact on the region with added jobs, increased demand for local corn and greater dollars circulating through the local economy,” said Jeff Broin, Broin Companies CEO. Broin stated that Great Plains is the only plant of the five managed by their company in the state of South Dakota that has the corn supply available to double plant capacity.

Highlighting the beneficial impact on the local economy, Great Plains Ethanol General Manager Rick Serie said, “The extra production capacity will allow us to grind an additional 18 million bushels of corn per year—with an expansion, total corn consumed annually by Great Plains will be 35 million bushels.”

In addition to creating a new market for additional corn, an expansion will more than double Great Plains’ annual production of Dakota Gold™ brand dried distillers grain to 220,000 tons.

“We are pleased about plans to increase our production of ethanol—a high-performance, environmentally friendly fuel that is made in America and reduces our dependence on foreign oil,” stated Serie.

Engineering activities and due diligence items for the expansion are moving forward at a brisk pace.

Broin Companies, based in Sioux Falls, SD, began building ethanol plants in 1983 and provides turnkey development, design/build, management and product marketing services for their partner facilities. As the second largest producer in the industry, the Broin Companies have designed and constructed 21 operating ethanol plants and currently have five more under construction or development. The Broin Companies produce, manage and market more than 700 million gallons of ethanol annually.