Butamax Advanced Biofuels has announced that two additional ethanol producers have joined their Early Adopters Group and have signed letters of intent to this effect.

The Early Adopters Group (EAG) was announced in December 2011 with founding member Highwater Ethanol, an ethanol producer based in Lamberton, Minnesota. Lincolnway Energy of Nevada, Iowa; and Corn, LP of Goldfield, Iowa are the latest additions to the EAG, a consortium of leading ethanol production companies interested in becoming early adopters of Butamax biobutanol technology for transportation fuel. Both ethanol plants are ICM/Fagen-designed facilities constructed by Fagen, Inc., and began operations in 2005/2006, each with a nameplate capacity of at least 50 mgpy (million gallons per year).

"The industry insight and capability of these facilities offer invaluable support for the launch of biobutanol," declared Paul Beckwith, Butamax CEO. "Fagen's construction expertise, Butamax's pioneering biobutanol technology and the operational excellence of our EAG members, is an ideal combination for enabling the rapid scale-up of biobutanol production."

Fagen, Inc., the world's most experienced biofuels engineering, procurement and construction contractor having built more ethanol capacity than any other company, will work with Butamax to retrofit facilities. Fagen has constructed over 85 ethanol plants worldwide totaling approximately 6 billion gallons of annual production.

"Butamax biobutanol technology allows our partners to improve the long-term financial performance of their existing facilities and advance production to the next generation of biofuels," added Beckwith. "Our early adopter partners have the opportunity to improve their profit margins while supporting their local agricultural communities, energy security and reduced greenhouse gas emissions."

Butamax was first to identify the opportunities and fundamental technology for cost-effective production of isobutanol through advanced biotechnology. Biobutanol is a high performing drop-in biofuel that can be blended at higher concentrations than ethanol, without the need for infrastructure changes while delivering twice the renewable energy content of current biofuel blends.