Panda to build $120 million manure-fueled ethanol plant

Dallas, TX— The Panda Group announced that it would build a 100 million gallon per year fuel ethanol plant in Hereford, Texas. The plant will refine U.S. grown corn and milo into a clean burning auto fuel that will replace the equivalent of 2.4 million barrels of imported gasoline per year. The $120 million project will break ground summer 2005 and become operational late 2006.

The Hereford plant will be the most energy efficient fuel ethanol facility to be built in the nation. Instead of using natural gas in its boilers, the plant will utilize technology that converts cattle manure and cotton gin waste into clean burning bio-gas to power the plant, realizing an energy savings equivalent to 1,000 barrels of oil per day.

“The community’s support and can-do attitude was a major factor in our decision to build the plant in Hereford,” stated Panda Development Group president Todd Carter. “The U.S. imports about 60% of the crude oil it refines and by blending fuel ethanol with gasoline it will help the U.S. move away from foreign oil. This is one of several renewable energy projects for Panda, which will help secure our country’s energy needs.”

Governors from 33 states are pushing to expand a government mandate for increased fuel ethanol use in cars. Every car manufactured since 1978 can use 10% fuel ethanol-blended gasoline, which reduces harmful carbon monoxide emissions by 25%. Major car manufacturers are now producing Flexible Fuel Vehicles known as E85 vehicles that can run on a blend 85% fuel ethanol and 15% gasoline thereby reducing harmful carbon monoxide emissions by 40%. The U.S. fuel ethanol production in 2004 was 3.4 billion gallons while the US used 140 billion gallons of gasoline per year.

Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, The Panda Group is a privately held company that has built over 9,000 MW of electric generation capacity at a cost of $5 billion. Panda is currently developing fuel ethanol plants, biomass electric generating facilities, bio-diesel plants and is also actively working on next generation clean coal projects throughout the U.S.

Additional information on Panda Energy International, Inc. and The Panda Group can be found at www.thepandagroup.com.