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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Advertisement Email Story to a Friend May 12, 2006 Two Oregon plants are slated to produce ethanol gasoline additive Nearly 150 million gallons of the corn-fuel mixture will be produced annually The Associated Press CLATSKANIE — Construction is expected to start next month on two ethanol plants that would combine to produce almost 150 million gallons of the corn-based fuel each year. If completed, the plants in Clatskanie and Boardman would be the first to produce corn-based ethanol in the Pacific Northwest. The ethanol produced in Oregon would be added to gasoline at rates of up to 10 percent by volume. With gas prices rising, there have been calls to expand the availability of alternative fuels such as ethanol. But when blended with gasoline at mixtures of 10 percent or less, the ethanol would offer little relief at the pump — given the small amount and the cost of blending. Ethanol, however, is cleaner burning and less polluting than gasoline and is viewed by some as a partial solution to America's dependence on foreign oil. The Oregon Department of Energy agreed to loan $20 million Wednesday to Cascade Grain Products LLC for a $192 million plant to be built near Clatskanie on the Columbia River. Advertisement Charles Carson, chief executive officer of Cascade Grain, said construction should be finished in 2008. The plant will employ 80 people and produce 113 million gallons of ethanol each year. The $50 million plant scheduled for the Eastern Oregon city of Boardman would have 30 workers and produce 35 million gallons of ethanol annually, said Tom Koehler, a vice president for Pacific Ethanol Inc., the Fresno, Calif.-based company building the plant. Pacific Ethanol, which has lost money in each of its two years of operation, recently got $84 million from Cascade Investment LLC, the investment firm of Bill Gates. Pacific Ethanol has a plant under construction in California and plans to use the Gates money to help build the Boardman plant and three others. Koehler said the Boardman plant could start producing ethanol by the middle of next year. Though new to the Pacific Northwest, there are more than 100 ethanol plants nationwide. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker Custom Build Computers Discount Hotel Reservations online casinos news Ashley Furniture HomeStore Send Flowers Southern Oregon Loans California Casinos GMAT Prep Windermere Van Vleet Sports Equipment Online Casino Reviews Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Online Casino Fundraisers Sudoku Online Casinos Canada Online Pharmacy Advertisements Advertisement