PEKIN, Ill., Sept. 19, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- Aventine Renewable Energy Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:AVR), a leading producer, marketer and end to end supplier of ethanol, and Consolidated Grain and Barge Co. ("CGB"), an innovative and progressive leader in the grain and transportation industries, today announced that they have completed their definitive agreement with respect to previously announced mutually beneficial business ventures.
Under the terms of the definitive agreement, CGB will transfer to Aventine the rights to lease 116 acres at the Port of Indiana-Mt. Vernon. The land will be leased from the Ports of Indiana under a long-term lease arrangement that has yet to be negotiated. Aventine intends to construct and operate a 220 million gallon ethanol facility on the leased site. In exchange for the assignment of the option to lease, CGB will become the exclusive grain originator and Dry Distillers Grain with Solubles ("DDGS") export marketer at the proposed facility, as well as the sole provider for ethanol and DDGS loading at the site.
CGB currently owns and operates 65 grain elevators in the U.S. CGB will utilize its approximate 10 million bushel elevator system in the Mt. Vernon area to handle grain for the ethanol plant, and will market the DDGS for export to Europe, Japan, and Asia. The Mt. Vernon port site is located on the lower Ohio River with excellent access to existing roads, rail and dock infrastructure, including river access to the Mississippi, Cumberland, Tennessee and Tombigbee rivers. The combination of inbound and outbound logistics provides a long term and sustainable competitive advantage for both Aventine and CGB. Rail service will be provided by CSX.
The agreement also provides that Aventine will get the first opportunity at any current or future CGB facilities to locate potential ethanol plants (to view CGB sites, go to their website at www.cgb.com). CGB will, in turn, be granted the first opportunity to bid for exclusive grain origination and DDGS export marketing at all of Aventine's future ethanol plants in the United States. The agreement provides for certain exceptions for existing facilities and for facilities already under consideration in Pekin, IL and Aurora, NE, for merger and acquisition activities, and does not preclude Aventine from structuring business relationships with other grain originating companies when unique opportunities are presented.
About Aventine
Aventine is a leading producer, marketer and end to end distributor of ethanol in the United States. Aventine produces, markets and distributes ethanol to leading energy companies. In addition to ethanol, it is also a producer of corn gluten feed, corn germ and brewers' yeast.
Internet address is www.aventinerei.com.
About CGB Enterprises, Inc.
Headquartered in Mandeville LA, a suburb of New Orleans, CGB Enterprises operates over 70 locations across the U.S. and through its subsidiary CGB Co., is a significant principle in the U.S. grain industry. In addition to owning/operating a significant number of grain facilities, CGB Enterprises operates numerous other related businesses units including, stevedoring, soybean processing, barge shipyard repair and fleeting, transportation services packages involving barges, railroad and trucking, ocean vessel services along the gulf coast, and risk management services for U.S. farmers.
Internet address is www.cgb.com.
Forward Looking Statements
Certain information included in this press release may be deemed to be "forward looking statements" within the meaning of section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, included in this press release, are forward looking statements. Any forward looking statements are not guarantees of Aventine's future performance and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, developments and business decisions to differ materially from those contemplated by such forward looking statements. Aventine disclaims any duty to update any forward looking statements. Some of the factors that may cause Aventine's actual results, developments and business decisions to differ materially from those contemplated by such forward looking statements include the following:
-- Changes in or elimination of laws, tariffs, trade or other
controls or enforcement practices such as:
-- National, state or local energy policy;
-- Federal ethanol tax incentives
-- Regulation currently under consideration pursuant to the
passage of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which contains
a renewable fuel standard and other legislation mandating
the usage of ethanol or other oxygenate additives;
-- State and federal regulation restricting or banning the use
of Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether
-- Environmental laws and regulations applicable to
Aventine's operations and the enforcement thereof;
-- Changes in weather and general economic conditions;
-- Overcapacity within the ethanol and petroleum refining
industries;
-- Total United States consumption of gasoline;
-- Availability and costs of products and raw materials,
particularly corn, coal and natural gas;
-- Labor relations;
-- Fluctuations in petroleum prices;
-- Aventine's or its employees' failure to comply with
applicable laws and regulations;
-- Aventine's ability to generate free cash flow to invest
in its business and service its indebtedness;
-- Limitations and restrictions contained in the instruments
and agreements governing Aventine's indebtedness;
-- Aventine's ability to raise additional capital and secure
additional financing;
-- Aventine's ability to retain key employees;
-- Liability resulting from actual or potential future
litigation;
-- Competition;
-- Plant shutdowns or disruptions at our plant or plants
whose products we market;
-- Successful negotiation and signing of a lease agreement
for the Mt. Vernon site between the Ports of Indiana and
Aventine for which there can be no assurances that any
such lease will be entered into;
-- Availability of rail cars and barges; and
-- Renewal of alliance partner contracts.