Marquis: ‘Together, we will weather this storm’

Note to readers: The following is an open letter to the public from Mark Marquis, CEO of Marquis Energy, Hennepin.

Dear Neighbor,

We are facing unprecedented times, casting a sense of uncertainty in our community for the future of our farms and livelihoods.

Our agricultural industry is facing a perfect storm of demand destruction from the current worldwide health crisis by COVID-19, the ongoing battle with “big oil” over the abuse of EPA’s granting of small refinery exemptions, and the continuing tariff war with China.

Despite these challenges, Marquis Energy is economically and logistically positioned to remain open.

We will be here for you.

We will be here for our community’s farmers.

We will be here as a market for corn demand.

We will be here for our hundreds of employees from our neighborhoods.

The Marquis Energy ethanol plant in Hennepin is the largest dry mill ethanol facility in the world and a global leader in innovation, marketing and profitability.

Our facility’s scale size and location on the river, lends us to be both economical and efficient. Of the 200 or so ethanol plants, only a handful are located on the river and equipped with access to a Class 1 railroad. We are uniquely positioned to cost-effectively barge and rail our fuel and dried distillers grains around the globe.

We are also fortunate to have developed the most prolific team in the industry. We remain on the cutting-edge of innovation and marketing — designing and implementing our technology to capture new records of high protein animal feed and marketing our products to the end users globally.

I hope this reassures you that even with the decline in fuel demand, Marquis Energy will be here.

It is this strong sense of dedication and innovation that makes us different from our competitors. We will not only persevere; we will advance our industry further in the days ahead.

Simply put, there is no country that can rival the efficiency, technology and hard work ethic of the American farmer. Together, we will weather this storm and experience brighter days ahead.

Please rest assured Marquis Energy will continue to provide you with a reliable market and advance our mission of bettering the community through service and producing homegrown ethanol for cleaner air and more affordable fuel.

Sincerely,

Mark Marquis

CEO, Marquis Energy