Sunoco CEO: Considering Other Biofuel Opportunities
07 August 2009 - 6:29AM
Dow Jones News
Sunoco Inc. (SUN) is considering delving further into the
biofuel business after purchasing an ethanol plant earlier this
year, Chief Executive and President Lynn Elsenhans said
Thursday.
The Philadelphia-based company would be interested in buying a
plant near their other assets that could be upgraded to run more
advance biofuels than corned-based ethanol, Elsenhans said Thursday
afternoon during a conference call with analysts.
In June, Sunoco completed the purchased of a 100 million
gallons-per-year ethanol plant in upstate New York. Sunoco bought
the facility, which has never been started, for $8.5 and plans to
invest up to $20 million to get it running.
The plant could provide 25% of the ethanol Sunoco needs to meet
blending requirements.
Sunoco would eventually like to produce 50% of the ethanol it
needs and purchased the rest, Elsenhans said Thursday.
"At the end of the day we would not be looking to cover 100% of
our blending needs," she said.
Sunoco's move into the ethanol business, follows competitor
Valero Energy Corp. (VLO).
Valero recently purchased several Midwestern ethanol plans and
is now the second-largest producer of the corn-based fuel in the
U.S.
-By Susan Daker, Dow Jones Newswires; 713-547-9208;
susan.daker@dowjones.com