Producers still bullish on ethanol

By Jenni Glenn, The Journal Gazette

One company foresees nearly limitless demand for alternative fuel as gas prices continue to rise.

The other expects profit margins to tighten for ethanol producers as more companies enter the field.

Their outlooks on the industry differ, but Indiana Bio-Energy LLC and Broin Companies each plan to invest more than $100 million to build ethanol plants in Wells County. Only three miles would separate the two plants southwest of downtown Bluffton. With the competition so close, each company recognizes it will need to be as efficient as possible to succeed in an industry projected to be increasingly cutthroat.