Livingstone fuels new chapter for Cornhusker Energy

Livingstone is pleased to announce the sale of Cornhusker Energy Lexington, LLC (“Cornhusker Energy” or the “Company”) to Chief Ethanol Fuels, Inc., a division of Chief Industries, Inc. Cornhusker Energy operates a 50 million gallon per year ethanol plant in Lexington, Nebraska. Cornhusker Energy produces and sells ethanol and ethanol products including wet distillers’ grain with solubles (WDGS) and dry distillers’ grain with solubles (DDGS). WDGS and DDGS are sold as animal feed to local farmers.

The Company is located strategically close to rail lines and farmers that produce over 385 million bushels of corn and over 2 million heads of cattle-on-feed annually.

“We led a highly competitive sale process that attracted substantial interest from multiple competing strategic parties,” said Livingstone Partner Joseph Greenwood. “Despite challenges in the energy sector, we achieved an attractive, market clearing price for Cornhusker Energy.”

Cornhusker marks the eighth transaction closed just this year for Livingstone’s special situations team, which began with the successful sale of Cardiac Science to Aurora Resurgence in January.

Livingstone has noted an uptick in the number of distressed companies throughout the middle market, especially those affected by global volatility around commodity prices. In March, the firm’s special situations team announced the successful §363 sale of metals distributor LB Steel, while the Livingstone Debt Advisory team raised financing for midstream oil and gas inspector Premium Inspection.

“Livingstone has continued to build expertise in the industries most adversely affected by volatile commodity prices and the global manufacturing slowdown,” added Greenwood.