Just where is the bottom? That's what the ethanol industry is wondering, after seeing the price for ethanol at Kinder Morgan's Chicago Argo terminal, the dominant US hub for ethanol trading, tumble by nearly 18% to historic lows in March.
On Monday, S&P Global Platts assessed Chicago Argo ethanol at $1.04/gal, the lowest assessment since Platts began the assessment in 2006. It was the latest blow to an industry already reeling from collapsing prices.
Then, things got even worse.
A combination of coronavirus-related demand fears and a price war in crude oil between Saudi Arabia and Russia have pounded global energy and agricultural markets. Gasoline prices have staggered to under $1/gal, pulling ethanol along with it.
Ethanol margins have sunk further below zero, meaning many ethanol plants were losing money on each gallon of the biofuel they cranked out.
