DuPont to Acquire Danisco for $6.3 Billion

DuPont has entered into a definitive agreement for the acquisition of Danisco, a global enzyme and specialty food ingredients company, for $5.8 billion in cash and assumption of $500 million of Danisco net debt. Upon closing, this transaction would establish DuPont as a clear leader in industrial biotechnology with science-intensive innovations that address global challenges in food production and reduced fossil fuel consumption.

“Danisco is a premier company, a long-time successful partner of DuPont and a proven innovator committed to sustainable growth,” said DuPont Chair and CEO Ellen Kullman. “Danisco has attractive, market-driven science businesses that offer clear synergies with DuPont Nutrition & Health and Applied BioSciences.”

“This transaction is a perfect strategic fit with our growth opportunities and will help us solve global challenges presented by dramatic population growth in the decades to come, specifically related to food and energy. In addition, biotechnology and specialty food ingredients have the potential to change the landscape of industries, such as substituting renewable materials for fossil fuel processes and addressing food needs in developing economies, that will generate more sustainable solutions and create growth for the company,” Kullman said.

The acquisition is expected to be financed with about $3 billion in existing cash and the remainder in debt. The transaction is expected to close early in the second quarter and be cash and earnings accretive in 2012, the first full year of the combined entity.

DuPont has set its 2011 earnings per share outlook at a range of $3.30 to $3.60 per share. The anticipated impact of this transaction would reduce that outlook by $.30 to $.45 per share on a reported basis.

“Danisco has two well-positioned global businesses that strongly complement our current biotechnology capabilities, R&D pipeline, and specialty food ingredients, a combination that offers attractive long-term financial returns. This also would create new opportunities across other parts of the DuPont portfolio, including traditional materials science offerings,” said Kullman.

Danisco is a leading technology-driven organization, with outstanding research and application development capabilities. The company has specialty food ingredients, including enablers, cultures and sweeteners, that generate about 65 percent of total sales; and Genencor, its enzymes division, represents 35 percent of total sales. Danisco and DuPont are already joint venture partners in the development of cellulosic ethanol technology. Danisco has nearly 7,000 employees globally with operations in 23 countries.

The acquisition is to be effected through a public tender offer by a subsidiary of DuPont for all of Danisco's outstanding shares at a price of DKK 665 in cash per share. Danisco has stated its intention to recommend the offer to its shareholders subject to and upon publication of the Offer Document relating to the tender offer following review by the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including certain regulatory approvals and the tender of more than 90 percent of the Danisco shares in the tender offer. DuPont has the right to waive such tender offer conditions and accept a lesser number of shares in certain cases.

Fulcrum BioEnergy Announces Supply Partnership With Waste Connections

Fulcrum BioEnergy Inc. announced an earlier arrangement to partner with Waste Connections of California, Inc., for the supply of post-sorted municipal solid waste ("MSW") to Fulcrum's Sierra BioFuels Plant, the company's first commercial-scale production facility for converting waste into low carbon ethanol, renewable electricity and other high value chemical products.

"We are pleased to be partnering with Waste Connections, on this first-of-its-kind project," said Fulcrum's President and Chief Executive Officer E. James Macias. "Their support over the past couple of years has played a key role in the successful development of our Sierra BioFuels project and demonstrates their commitment to the environment. We look forward to working with Waste Connections on this milestone project that will convert household garbage that would otherwise be landfilled, into a clean, renewable transportation fuel," added Macias.

"We are proud to be a part of this exciting renewable energy project," said Waste Connections' President, Steve Bouck. "The Sierra BioFuels Plant is an example of how companies can work together to create economically and environmentally responsible solid waste management solutions and convert waste into a resource for clean energy," added Bouck.

Earlier this year, Fulcrum launched engineering activities with Fluor on the fully-permitted Sierra BioFuels Plant. With commercial operations planned for late 2012, the project is expected to be the Nation's first commercial-scale production facility for converting post-sorted MSW into ethanol, renewable electricity and propanol.

Last month, Fulcrum announced that the Sierra BioFuels Plant was selected by the U.S. Department of Energy ("DOE") to advance to the final phase of the DOE's Loan Guarantee Program. Fulcrum has received a detailed term sheet and has begun the negotiation process with a goal of closing and funding the loan during the first quarter of 2011. Following the completion of the financing, Fulcrum will immediately begin construction on the $120 million project located approximately 20 miles east of Reno, Nevada in the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center in Storey County. The plant will provide the Reno market with a much needed low-cost, reliable and environmentally clean source of transportation fuel and will help stimulate economic growth in Northern Nevada by creating more than 500 new green jobs.

The Sierra BioFuels Plant is the first of several projects that Fulcrum is developing across North America. With a pipeline of opportunities that have a future capacity to produce over one billion gallons of ethanol annually, Fulcrum's process will produce low carbon ethanol that reduces greenhouse gas emissions by more than 75% compared to traditional gasoline production and mitigates our country's dependence on foreign oil.

See Also :
Fulcrum BioEnergy Project Selected to Advance to the Final Stage for a DOE Loan Guarantee
Fulcrum BioEnergy Begins Construction On Municipal Solid Waste To Ethanol Plant

Hawkeye Renewables Announces Sale of Ethanol Plants to Flint Hills Resources Renewables

Hawkeye Renewables, LLC announced today that it entered into an agreement to sell its ethanol plants located in Iowa Falls and Fairbank, Iowa, to Flint Hills Resources Renewables, LLC in an all-cash transaction. Flint Hills Resources Renewables is an affiliate of Koch Industries, Inc. and Flint Hills Resources, LLC, a leading provider of transportation fuels used in the Upper Midwest. The purchase price for the transaction is not being disclosed. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close early in the first quarter of 2011. Hawkeye Renewables has received the requisite consent from its equity holders to approve the transaction.

Hawkeye Renewables emerged from its Chapter 11 restructuring on June 18, 2010, under new equity ownership. "Over the past six months we have made significant progress in improving Hawkeye Renewables' operations," said James V. Continenza, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Hawkeye Renewables. "Our agreement with Flint Hills builds on this solid foundation and represents a successful conclusion to the strategic review that our Board began to maximize equity holder value." Mr. Continenza added, "It is my belief that Flint Hills Resources Renewables will be a committed operator in the Iowa community and will work diligently to develop and maintain relationships with Hawkeye Renewables' existing vendors, suppliers, and farmers."

*NOTE* In August, Flint Hills announced that they were buying two Iowa ethanol plants from Hawkeye Growth. The two plants are located in Menlo and Shell Rock, Iowa.

When I first saw today's announcement I thought it was probably talking about the same two plants but calling them by different names for the communities that they are located in. According to this press release issued when Hawkeye Renewables exiting bankruptcy reorganization, the two plants in today's announcement are different from those involved in the August announcement and Hawkeye Renewables and Hawkeye Growth are two separate entities. Here are a couple of exerts from that press release.

"Hawkeye Renewables, LLC (“Renewables”) with ethanol plants in Iowa Falls and Fairbank, Iowa, announced it successfully emerged on June 18, 2010 from its Chapter 11 restructuring under new equity ownership."

"The restructuring process did not include Hawkeye Growth plants in Menlo and Shell Rock, Iowa."

GreenShift’s Patented Corn Oil Extraction Process Demonstrates Record Performance

GreenShift Corporation today announced that its patented corn oil extraction processes have demonstrated record levels of added profit for ethanol producers.

A new corn oil extraction system at a 110 million gallon per year ethanol facility would pay for itself within less than 6 months, producing additional profit of about $0.08 per gallon of ethanol produced and about $9 million per year at current corn oil market prices.

DOE Delivers Final E15 Test Results To EPA

The U.S. DOE has delivered the final results of its tests using E15 in vehicle models 2001-2006 to the U.S. EPA, but interested parties will have to wait a bit longer before they can access the data. According to the U.S. EPA, the agency received the DOE’s final test results in the final hours of 2010. The EPA said it expects to release the additional data “within the next couple of days” but declined to comment further on the test results, adding that it remains on track to issue a decision on expanding the use of E15 soon.

Source : Ethanol Producer Magazine