This dynamic ethanol company emphasizes constant improvement of its infrastructure and quality through partnerships.

Heartland Grain Fuels, headquartered in Aberdeen, SD, is one of the few companies in the US making strides toward fuel conservation. The company has a 9 million-gallon ethanol plant at its headquarters, as well as a 30 million-gallon ethanol plant in Huron, SD. Heartland Grain Fuels (HGF) also has a 40 million-gallon ethanol plant under construction adjacent to its existing plant in Aberdeen.

Last November, Advanced BioEnergy, LLC and the board of directors of Dakota Fuels, Inc., (the managing partner of Heartland Grain Fuels) announced that the limited partners of HGF entered into a business relationship. The business relationship enabled the Heartland Grain Fuels owners to receive cash from their investment in HGF and to continue their ownership in ethanol production through ownership of Advanced BioEnergy (ABE) equity.

HGF is owned by Heartland Producers, LLC, many of whose members are South Dakota Wheat Growers Association producers; Aventine Renewable Energy, Inc., HGF’s marketing partner; South Dakota Wheat Growers Association, a farmer-owned grain and agronomy cooperative; and Dakota Fuels, Inc., the general partner of HGF, jointly owned by Heartland Producers and South Dakota Wheat Growers.

Organized in early 2005, ABE is a development-stage company specializing in ethanol production. It most recently built a 100 million-gallon- per-year dry mill corn-processing ethanol plant near Fairmont, Neb., and plans to build similar plants near Rochester, Ind., and Northfield, Minn. Under the terms of the transaction, the partners of HGF will receive an estimated $16.8 million in cash and approximately 2,631,000 newly issued units of ABE. In addition, HGF intends to make a special distribution to its partners of about $8.65 million of earnings prior to the initial closing of the transaction with ABE.

A win for everyone
In 2005, Heartland Grain Fuels began an 18 million-gallon-per-year expansion to its ethanol plant in Huron, SD. Today, the completed plant processes about 11 million bushels of corn into 30 million gallons of ethanol and approximately 90,000 tons of distillers grains each year. “Heartland Grain Fuels was a pioneer in the farmer-owned ethanol industry. This expansion will ensure it remains a leader as the industry grows,” said Bob Dinneen, president, in a press release.

“This expansion represents a win for every one. The local community is receiving a boost from the near tripling in ongoing economic activity. The farm community will benefit from the additional 6.4 million bushels in local corn demand,” said general manager Bill Paulsen, through company materials. “The investors in Heartland Grain Fuels will benefit from the added efficiency as well as increased capacity of the Huron facility.”