PLATTE -- Nebraska-based Nedak Ethanol LLC will be looking for a few good investors Monday evening in Platte.
The company is seeking $35 million to $60 million in investor equity to build a 44-million-gallon ethanol plant near Atkinson, Neb., about 100 miles south of Platte.
Jerome Fagerland, general manager of Nedak Ethanol, said the Platte stop is the sixth and possibly last in a series of six investor meetings.
"Response has been so good," said Fagerland, "that we have to make a decision how far over the $35 million we want to go."
Financial commitments gathered to date are still being tallied, and directors will re-evaluate Friday how much additional investment will be required. Fagerland believes the company is approaching the minimum $35 million it needs.
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The largest group of investors to show at a meeting thus far, said Fagerland, was at a June 20 Atkinson meeting that drew 400 to 500.
Other Nebraska meetings were in York and Wisner. South Dakota meetings were held in Pierre and Rapid City earlier this week.
Prospective investors who show up for the 7 p.m. informational meeting in the Platte Community Center must have finances ready to go. A maximum of 6,000 equity units at $10,000 apiece will be offered to the public, Fagerland said, with a minimum investment of $30,000. One hundred percent must be paid up front.
"We have a very short window before construction starts," said Fagerland, explaining the need for the advance payment. "August 15 is our target date (to begin construction)."
The $90.1 million plant will have $74 million in construction costs, he said.
Nedak will use a management firm to run the new plant, but Fagerland declined to release that firm's name. Nedak was incorporated in 2003, and the Atkinson plant is the company's first project.
Site preparation for the plant is about 80 percent complete. Tax increment financing will be used to pay for some costs, Fagerland said, but he did not know the amount of the TIF. A $5 million TIF, however, was noted in the project's prospectus.
The property is served by the Nebraska Northeastern Railway, said Fagerland.
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Details of Nedak board membership, as well as a copy of information to be presented at the investor's meeting, are available on the company Web site at www.nedakethanol.com .
Openness will be a company policy, Fagerland said.
"We're an open company that's friendly to the small investor, and (that openness) was a board of directors' commitment."
Another ethanol plant is possibly in the works near Wagner. Fagerland said that plant would be "70 to 80 miles away" and would not compete with the Atkinson plant.
