Sioux Falls, SD – During its first quarter meeting, the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) Board of Directors elected its Officers and Executive Committee for 2021.

Re-elected to serve as officers on the 2021 Executive Committee are:

Dave Sovereign, Chairman of Golden Grain Energy’s Board, which oversees a locally owned 120 million-gallon-per-year (MGY) ethanol plant in Mason City, Iowa. Sovereign also serves on the Absolute Energy board, a locally owned 125 MGY ethanol producer in St. Ansgar, Iowa. Sovereign accepted the nomination of President of the ACE Board.

“I’m looking forward to lending my perspective as an Iowa farmer who’s served on the boards of two Iowa ethanol plants in this leadership position on the ACE board,” Sovereign said. “After serving on the executive committee for a number of years, I’m eager to further the tremendous work this organization and its staff have done to promote and provide ethanol demand opportunities as its president.”

Duane Kristensen, who served as the President of ACE’s Board of Directors for the past three years, is stepping down from the ACE Executive Committee but keeping his seat on the Board. Kristensen is the General Manager and Vice President of Operations of Chief Ethanol Fuels, which owns a 70 MGY ethanol plant in Hastings and a 40 MGY plant in Lexington, Nebraska.

  • Troy Knecht, South Dakota farmer, representing Redfield Energy, a 50 MGY ethanol producer in Redfield, South Dakota. Knecht accepted the nomination of Vice President of the ACE Board.
  • Ron Alverson, serving as Treasurer of the ACE Board of Directors, represents Dakota Ethanol, which owns a 50 MGY plant in Wentworth, South Dakota.
  • Chris Wilson, General Manager of Mid-Missouri Energy, a 50 MGY plant in Malta Bend, Missouri, serving as the Secretary of the ACE Board.

Newly elected to serve on the 2021 Executive Committee are:

  • Chris Studer, Chief Member and Public Relations Officer for East River Electric Power Cooperative.

“East River is proud of our history as a founding member of ACE anda partner in biofuels production as the wholesale electric supplier to over a dozen ethanol plants in the region,” Studer said. “I am looking forward to working alongside my colleagues on the Executive Committee to ensure biofuels and the electric cooperative system have a seat at the table as we work to strengthen rural America.”

  • John Christianson, Director of Christianson PLLP, an accounting and business consulting firm for Ag and Renewable Energy, who also served on the Minnesota Biofuels Council’s Executive Committee.

“I’m excited to join the ACE Executive Committee to support ACE’s role to develop new clean fuel policies in the Midwest and at the federal level which will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase ethanol demand, and reward ag producers for being stewards of our environment,” Christianson said.

For a full list of the ACE Board, visit ACE’s website at https://ethanol.org/meet-ace/board.

Related Articles:

Get Grain E-News delivered to your inbox each Thursday. Sign up here.

Podcast: Unpacking Corn's Power With Dr. Gordon Selling of the USDA Agricultural Research Service

Biden's EPA Pick to Review Options for Biofuel Blending Law Beyond 2022