POET Project LIBERTYMarch 19, 2009

DOE Biomass Program Integrated BiorefineryPlatform Peer Review

Open Session

James SturdevantPOET, LLC

This presentation does not contain any proprietary, confidential, or otherwise restricted information

2

Overview

Award 1, Cooperative Agreement• Start date – 10/01/07• End date – 3/31/10Award 2, TIA• Start date – 10/01/08• End date – 9/30/14

• End-to-end process integration• Commercial-scale

demonstration facilities• Risk of pioneer technologies

Award 1, Cooperative Agreement• $9.6M Tot. Award BudgetAward 2, TIA• $193.8M Tot. Est. Cost Total DOE Cost Share:• 40% up to $80M

Timeline Budget

Barriers Addressed• NREL• Novozymes• Numerous equipment

companies and others

Partners

3

Project Goals and Objectives

Goal: A commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol biorefinery.

Objectives:• Integrate cellulosic ethanol technologies with existing

corn-based, dry mill ethanol technologies• Implement a sustainable biomass feedstock

collection, storage, and delivery system• Maximize alternative energy production and minimize

traditional energy usage• Enable replication at other existing or new

biorefineries

4

POET Biorefining – EmmetsburgEmmetsburg, Iowa

5

Project Goals and Objectives• Project LIBERTY supports the strategic goal of the

DOE Integrated Biorefineries Platform:To demonstrate and validate integrated technologies to achieve commercially acceptable performance and cost pro forma targets (DOE OBP MYPP, p. 3-68)

• Project LIBERTY addresses demonstration and deployment of the DOE Integrated Biorefineries Agricultural Residue Processing Pathway (DOE OBP MYPP, p. 3-71)

6

Two Agreements

1. Cooperative Agreement• Preparation for construction• Risk Mitigation, environmental engineering, feedstock,

preliminary engineering

2. Technology Investment Agreement• Construction and operational reporting • A plant capable of processing a minimum of 700 dry metric

tonnes per day of lignocellulose to produce ethanol product

• Make a commercially-reasonable decision whether LIBERTY will replicate

7

Technical Progress

Environmental Engineering

• Key Milestone: A Positive NEPA Determination

• Completed documents:o Baseline Reporto Proposed Action Reporto Scoping Lettero Environmental Assessmento Mitigation Action Plan

8

Technical Progress (Cont’d)

Preliminary Engineering • To be based on results from

pilot plant, POET Research Center, Scotland, SD

• Operations began 11/08• Lab-scale process works at

pilot scale• Making cellulosic ethanol• Material handling is complex• Focus is on reducing costs

9

Technical Progress

Feedstock – Corn Cobs and Corn Fiber

Requirements• 700 bone dry metric tonnes per day• Cobs from 400,000 - 500,000 acres annually• 34 - 42% of corn acres within 35-mile radius of Emmetsburg

Corn Cob Approach• With original equipment manufacturers, determine methods

and equipment for cob supply chain• Inform local producers• Evaluate agronomic impacts of corn cob harvesting

Farmer / OEM / POET Responsibility

P O E T R e s p o n s i b i l i t y

Collection In-Field Transport, Storage & Logistics

Pile Pick-Up & Transportation At-Plant Receiving & Storage Communication & Marketing

P O E T / I S U

Agronomics

Cob Supply Chain

11

Collaborating Agriculture Equipment Manufacturers

Fantini

12

2007 and 2008 Cob Harvests

• A total of nearly 13,000 acres• Iowa, South Dakota, and Texas• 13 equipment manufacturers• Three cob harvest methods• Excellent farmer feedback• Economic data

Inform Local ProducersLIBERTY Field DayNovember 6, 2008

LIBERTY Blastoff Meeting, March 13, 2008

14

15

Success Factors

1. Profitability

2. Sustainable Feedstock Supply

3. Financing

16

Challenges 1. Technical

• We are learning much from pilot plant

2. Sustainable Feedstock Supply• USDA BCAP and other incentives are required

3. Financing• Federal Loan Guarantee is required

4. Timeline

17

Future Work

• State Air & Water Permitting

• Prepare commercial-scale enzymes (Novozymes)

• Preliminary Engineering

• Final Engineering

• Financing Package

18

Future Work (Cont’d)

Feedstock:• Work to accelerate:

– Equipment company “prototype-to-production” process

– Farmer adoption• Conduct a pre-commercial

cob harvest in 2009• Continue agronomics studies

Corn cobs represent over 5 billion gallons of ethanol

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

Award 2 Construction

Award 1 & 2 OverlapAward 1

Operation begins

Award 2 Operations

Annual Operations Reports

Construction begins

NEPA FONSITIA signed

CA signed

DOE selects LIBERTY

Timeline

20

SummaryStatus: We are preparing for construction

DOE contracts in place, NEPA hurdle cleared, feedstock work underway, pilot plant operating, preliminary engineering beginning

Approach: We are confident in the LIBERTY modelIntegrate the technology with an existing biorefinery, use a corn crop residue as feedstock, use an established network of grain suppliers

Relevance: There will be tremendous payoffsWith predicted increases in corn yields and over one billion tons of cellulosic biomass in the U.S.,* the possibilities for ethanol are staggering. If our nation has the resolve, we could almost eliminate our need for fossil fuels for automotive transportation and replace it with a homegrown, environmentally friendly, renewable fuel.* USDA/DOE