Reinvestment and Risk Management

摘要

While some ethanol plants are struggling to cover their operating expenses， Connie Lindstrom， senior biofuels analyst with Christianson CPAs & Consultants， says there is also reason for optimism in the industry."There are plants that are hanging in there and they‘re doing fine，"she says.Lindstrom presented Christianson‘s industry benchmarking numbers at the 2019 Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo in June and says the data doesn‘t point to a specific factor for plants'success or failure， such as size or location."We have solidly performing plants that are any size or that are in many locations，"she says."There are ways to be successful， even in times like this where the margins are so tight.I think just having an awareness of that is something that‘s important for plants to keep in mind."Fundamentally， planning is key for plants， she says."The plants that seem to be doing the best are the ones that have been making regular reinvestments in their plant and some regular conversation about the future of the facility and their organization，"she says."The plants that were thinking about what things might be like in 2018 in 2014， when they had money to reinvest， those are the plants that are in that leader category now."Another factor in many plants'success is the experience of upper management."Many of these plants have extremely experienced leadership teams that understand what needs to be done to optimize the performance at a facility， and hanging on to those people and listening to them and making a plan going forward is the most important thing they can do，"she says.