Well, this article is way too complicated to really dig into on this site, but I figure some people might be of interest, so here’s a summation. 

Basically, as ethanol becomes more and more popular due to changes in federal regulations and consumer demand, it’s opened the doors for quite a few companies to come out of the closet…so to speak.  Looking to expand, they need capital, so they go public to finance they’re continued growth.  Company’s such as Pacific Ethanol (PEIX) have made the papers as of recent because of large investments by the likes of Bill Gates.  These investment dollars go toward building manufacturing facilities and creating a means for distribution.  For instance Pacific Ethanol’s plan calls for 5 manufacturing plants by 2008.  Other companies include, Green Plains Renewable Energy (GPRE) and Xethanol Corp (XTHN).  The first of these is building a plant, while the later has plans to acquire a second.  MPG Ingredients (MGPI) and Anderson’s Inc (ANDE) here in Minnesota are also in the mix.  And one of the largest current ethanol producers continues to be Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), with over 1 billion gallons a year in ethanol production. 

Also in the mix as a soon to be public offering is Verasun, which according to the article is “the first standalone company currently producing significant amounts of ethanol to debut its shares on Wall Street.”  It will set the price for future entrants into the market starting with $18 to $20 dollars a share.  Following its debut, other companies going public include Aventine Renewable and Hawkeye Holdings.

According to the article, “The U.S. will need to invest about $7 billion in the ethanol business and import sugar cane from Brazil to significantly displace imported oil used in cars’ gas tanks, according to a study by Bear Stearns.”

The article goes into more depth on the growth of the industry, but I see this article as more of a place to start looking for information than necessarly something that would make me want to invest.  However, if you are seriously looking at the subject, it lays out the playing field pretty nicely.

Have fun!

Big Test for Ethanol Makers Going Public

By the way, as a reference, the article is by Steve Gelsi, MarketWatch and is called Ethanol maker VeraSun hopes to shine in debut