Trade Resources Industry Views The Estimated Production Margin for a Typical US Midwest Dry-Mill Ethanol Plant Fell

The Estimated Production Margin for a Typical US Midwest Dry-Mill Ethanol Plant Fell

The estimated production margin for a typical US Midwest dry-mill ethanol plant for the week ended Friday fell 20.06 cents, or 15.6%, to a six-week low of $1.0854/gal, a review of US Department of Agriculture and Platts data showed.

As weekly stocks data and added imports had a starkly bearish effect on ethanol prices, the margin retreated for a fourth straight week from an eight-year high hit in the last week of March.

The estimated ethanol price used in calculating the margin was the weekly average of the Platts Chicago Argo ethanol assessment, which tumbled 19.4 cents, or 8.13%, to a seven-week low of $2.3870/gal.

US ethanol stocks for the week ended April 18 moved up 566,000 barrels to a seven-week high of 16.518 million barrels, US Energy Information Administration data showed Wednesday.

The weekly average estimated dried distillers grain byproduct price declined $5.02/st to $230.55/st, hitting a four-week decline for the first time since August.

The weekly average estimated delivered feedstock corn cost declined 2.37 cents, or 0.5%, to $4.7535/bushel.

The estimated denaturant cost dropped 6.51 cents to $2.2780/gal, while the estimated monthly natural gas cost was stable at $5.33/MMBtu.

The denaturant cost was based on the weekly average of the Platts natural gasoline assessment at the Conway, Kansas, hub, while the gas cost was based on the April Platts Chicago ANR 7 pipeline monthly index.

The estimated production margin for a typical dry-mill ethanol plant was calculated by weighing data from Platts and government agencies, including average delivered corn cost, dried distiller grain prices, natural gas prices, certain blending costs and ethanol prices.

Fixed-cost calculations were based on a 50 million gal/year-capacity Midwestern plant with 32 employees working at an average salary of $47,300/year.

Source: http://news.chemnet.com/Chemical-News/detail-2300086.html
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US Midwest Ethanol Margin Tumbles to Six-Week Low as Prices Slide
Topics: Chemicals