Project LIBERTY First Commercial Cellulosic Biorefinery HIRING Staff

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Emmetsburg, Iowa August 23, 2013; POET-DSM Advanced Biofuels is now hiring full-time, quality team members to staff and operate Project LIBERTY, a 20 million-gallon-per-year cellulosic ethanol plant, which is set to open in Emmetsburg, Iowa early 2014.

The plant will use crop residue (corn cobs, leaves, husk, some stalk) to produce 20 million gallons of ethanol per year, later ramping up to 25 million gallons per year.

The plant is currently filling a number of positions, including:
- Environmental Health and Safety Specialist
- Plant Engineer
- Accountant
- Plant Technician
“This is a phenomenal opportunity to get involved in cellulosic ethanol production on the ground floor,” General Manager Daron Wilson said. “This industry is now the newest growth area for energy in the United States, and it’s happening right here in Emmetsburg, Iowa.”

For a full list of open positions, visit poetdsm.com/employment.

At full operation, Project LIBERTY will have a significant economic impact on the surrounding area. The bio-refinery will benefit the area by providing:
- Approximately 40 full-time jobs at the plant
- Another 65 jobs in the local community for feedstock supply, logistics, equipment support and more
- Jobs for as many as 200 construction workers, who currently are building the plant
- Nearly $4 million in direct, indirect and induced earnings annually once operational
- More than $1 million annual tax revenue for local taxing entities
- Approximately $20 million in biomass purchases annually for farmers in a 30-mile radius

Project LIBERTY, is under construction today. For more information and photos of construction progress, visit poetdsm.com.

About POET-DSM Advanced Biofuels, LLC
POET-DSM Advanced Biofuels, LLC, is a 50/50 joint venture between Royal DSM and POET, LLC. Based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the company is a cooperative effort of two innovators that provides a key to unlocking the opportunity of converting corn crop residue into cellulosic bio-ethanol. Built on the strengths of both companies, the joint venture has a critical mission: to make cellulosic bio-ethanol competitive with corn bio-ethanol, the most competitive renewable liquid transportation fuel on the US market today. Drawing on the deep expertise and experience of POET and DSM in different areas of converting cellulosic biomass into bio-ethanol, POET-DSM Advanced Biofuels will have its first commercial-scale plant co-located with POET Biorefining – Emmetsburg in Emmetsburg, Iowa. Based on this plant, the JV plans to globally license an integrated technology package for the conversion of corn crop residue to cellulosic bio-ethanol. More information: www.poetdsm.com.

About Cellulosic Ethanol

Cellulosic ethanol is ethanol made from cellulose, a non-grain material/feedstock that provides the cellular structure for all plants. The end product – a clean-burning, high-octane fuel – is the same as ethanol made from corn.

Cellulose, which provides the cellular structure for all plants, is the world's most abundant organic compound. POET has been researching and developing cellulosic ethanol technology since 2001, when we began performing bench-scale testing of our cellulosic technology at our research laboratory. In 2008, we began producing cellulosic ethanol at pilot scale at our research center. In partnership with Royal DSM of the Netherlands, POET-DSM Advanced Biofuels intends to open a commercial-scale ethanol plant in Emmetsburg, Iowa – dubbed “Project LIBERTY” – in 2013. Project LIBERTY’s feedstock will be corn crop residue – cobs, leaves, husk and some stalk.

The Future of Cellulosic Ethanol

Cellulosic ethanol's potential is enormous. Department of Energy estimates have identified 1.3 billion tons of harvestable cellulosic biomass in the United States alone, which could theoretically be used to meet more than one-third of domestic transportation fuel demand. The Renewable Fuels Standard sets an annual goal of 36 billion gallons of renewable fuel by 2022, with 16 billion gallons coming from cellulosic ethanol.

POET hopes to play a significant role in meeting that. Beyond the Emmetsburg, Iowa plant, we intend to build additional cellulosic ethanol plants co-located with our existing biorefineries, which we believe represents up to a one billion gallon per year opportunity. Our joint venture also intends to license our integrated technology package and offer a turnkey design, engineering and construction package to third parties.