Press Releases

Prairie Ethanol, LLC Celebrates Grand Opening



Wednesday, December 6, 2006


$80 million ethanol production facility Saturday near Mitchell, SD. The ground breaking for the 60 million gallon per year ethanol production facility was held Oct. 12, 2005.

The day’s events included a Vanguard Squadron fly-over, a 60-minute program, a buffet-style lunch and public tours of the facility.

The program featured political dignitaries, industry representatives and company officials. Tommi Hanson commenced the program with the national anthem and an invocation.

U.S. Senator John Thune expressed his excitement about being part of the ongoing effort to advance renewable energy. “This plant is a new dawn for farming in South Dakota and a new dawn for our rural economy,” he stated. “The ethanol industry is transforming this state like never before.”

Prairie Ethanol, which will utilize Broin’s patent-pending BPX™ raw starch hydrolysis process, is one of the most technologically advanced and environmentally friendly ethanol production facilities in the nation.
South Dakota Senator Ed Olson reminisced about legislation that he helped pass during his time as a Congressman and Senator. “These bills gave birth and stability to the ethanol industry,” he said. “I’m thrilled to see this plant here today. It’s a wonderful day for agriculture in South Dakota.”

Erik Nelson, reading a letter on behalf of U.S. Senator Tim Johnson echoed the comments of many by stating the value of growing energy in South Dakota. “Ethanol Production in South Dakota created $1.1 billion in economic activity in 2004…The benefits from increased ethanol production will raise incomes in many parts of our state and help diversify our economy,” said Nelson.

“This plant is a huge investment is this community, and we get lost in the numbers,” said South Dakota Representative Mike Vehle. Vehle helped the audience put the plant’s impact into perspective by stating that the amount of trucks delivering grain to the plant in one year would be enough to stretch across the entire state.

Attending on behalf of Mayor Lou Sebert, Mitchell City Council President Ken Tracy commented on how important Prairie Ethanol is for the area. “We recognize the impact and economic benefit to our community…when the agriculture community and farmers and ranchers benefit, so does the whole city of Mitchell,” he stated.

Bryan Hisel, Executive Director of the Mitchell Area Development Corporation expressed his enthusiasm for value added agri-business, stating that he was pleased with how much progress has been made.
“Prairie Ethanol is a testament of the hard work done by the local and national politicians and government administrators involved with the project,” Jeff Broin, CEO of Broin Companies, said. “More importantly, this facility is a wonderful symbol to the renewed growth and value-added economic development in America. Local farmers, businesses and adjacent communities will all benefit from the tens of millions of dollars this plant will create for the local economy.”

Brian Jennings, Executive Vice President of Public Policy for the American Coalition for Ethanol took a moment to focus on the employees of Prairie Ethanol, “I’d like to congratulate the employees of Prairie Ethanol – you get to make a living by making the economy better, by improving the environment and promoting energy security.”
Over 40 new jobs and $1.8 million annual payroll will be created by the new plant.

Also addressing the audience to introduce plant staff was Prairie Ethanol’s General Manager Dean Frederickson.

Jerry Rubendall, who has been dedicated to bringing an ethanol project to the Mitchell area for over 5 years, cut the ribbon that officially marked the Grand Opening of the plant.

Prior to the ceremony, the Vanguard Squadron, with four 100% ethanol-powered airplanes, entertained the crowd with a formation flyover. Plant tours held throughout the morning and afternoon allowed attendees an up-close view of the plant and the ethanol production process.

On display and attracting lots of attention was the Team Ethanol Indy Racing League® Car. Team Ethanol Indy Racing is sponsored by many industry organizations, including the Broin Companies as a title sponsor. The team promotes ethanol as a high-performance fuel that is clean-burning, renewable, and made in America. The IndyCar Series®’ support for ethanol reinforces the product as a premier performance fuel. In 2007, the cars will use 100% ethanol.

Also on display to the liking of many attendees was the Ethanol Express Pulling Truck driven by Scott Jensen of Dell Rapids, S.D. The Ethanol Express uses 60% ethanol and 40% high octane gasoline, and in the 2006 season achieved 35 first place finishes in over 50 pulling events.
The plant, which is located on the edge of Mitchell, will produce 178,000 tons of Dakota Gold Enhanced Nutrition Distillers Products™ for regional, national, and international markets. Prairie Ethanol, LLC will produce 60 million gallons of ethanol annually from 21 million bushels of corn, is the 12th ethanol plant in the state of South Dakota, and the 9th plant built in South Dakota by Broin Companies. Broin Companies provides turnkey development, design, engineering, construction, management, and marketing services for their premier partner plants. Prairie Ethanol, LLC is the 25th plant built since the company’s inception.

To view and download photos of the event, please visit http://www.prairieethanol.com/photos.html.

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