VeraSun Announces Hartley as Preferred Site for Ethanol Plant in Northwestern Iowa

VeraSun plans to locate 110-million-gallon-per-year facility near Hartley, Iowa

BROOKINGS, S.D., Aug. 4 -- VeraSun officials announced today they have informed the O'Brien County Economic Development Corporation that Hartley, Iowa, has been selected as the location of the Company's new 110- million-gallon-per-year ethanol production facility in Northwestern Iowa. The site is located on approximately 350 acres southwest of Hartley.

"Our site selection has been based on criteria including corn availability, access to transportation, utilities, and community workforce," said VeraSun President Bruce Jamerson. "We are excited to be moving forward in Hartley and will be finalizing the arrangements necessary for construction. The community support in O'Brien and Clay counties for our development has been outstanding. We expect our project to have a positive impact on both counties due to the scale and reach of the facility, with our need for corn, employees and contractors."

Kiana Johnson, Executive Director of the O'Brien County Economic Development Corporation, said, "We are pleased that VeraSun has selected this site near Hartley. This project will have great benefit for Hartley and the entire region."

Steve Leng, a member of the Hartley Economic Development Corporation said, "We are looking forward to a great relationship with VeraSun and working with them. It will be a big economic boost to the city and the local ag community. We have a significant amount of community support for this project."

Construction of the plant, planned to begin later this year, will take approximately 16 months. When completed, the plant will process more than 39 million bushels of corn annually and employ approximately 50 skilled workers. VeraSun expects to enter into contracts with ICM and Fagen, Inc. for engineering and construction services for the facility.

About VeraSun Energy Corporation

VeraSun Energy Corporation is the second-largest ethanol producer in the U.S., based on production. The company has two operating production facilities located in Aurora, South Dakota and Fort Dodge, Iowa, is constructing a third facility in Charles City, Iowa, and an additional facility is under development in Welcome, Minnesota. Upon completion of the new facilities, VeraSun will have an annual production capacity of approximately 560 million gallons of ethanol per year.

VeraSun's branded E85 is now available at more than 70 retail locations across the Midwest. The company markets VeraSun E85, a blend of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline for Flexible Fuel Vehicles (FFVs), directly to fuel retailers under the brand VE85(TM). For more information, please visit the VeraSun websites at http://www.verasun.com/ or http://www.ve85.com/ .

Web sites: http://www.verasun.com
http://www.VE85.com