Ethanol Blog: Trump Administration Grants Loan Guarantee Extension for Gevo on Proposed SAF Plant Plans

by Todd Neeley (DTN Progressive Farmer) Englewood, Colorado,-based Gevo Inc. was granted an extension on a $1.46 billion U.S. Department of Energy loan guarantee on proposed plan to build an ethanol-to-jet sustainable aviation fuel plant in Lake Preston, South Dakota, as the company considers a change to the project including potentially building in North Dakota.

Prior to the presidential election in October 2024, Gevo received a conditional approval from the Biden administration for the project.

The Trump administration on Oct. 8, 2025, granted an extension on that approval to April 16, 2026, according to a statement from Gevo.

The extension will allow the company and the DOE to consider potential modifications to the scope of the project to "address this administration's energy policies and priorities" according to Gevo.

According to a filing with the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission, the extension allows Gevo and the DOE to consider changes to the scope of the project.

Those modifications could include the construction of a lower-cost 30-million-gallon production facility at Gevo's existing ethanol and carbon capture utilization and storage plant in North Dakota.

"This is an important infrastructure project that creates jobs and opportunity for rural America, so it is significant that we continue to work with DOE to make this project a success," the company said in a statement.

The Gevo project has been called into question after South Dakota lawmakers passed a law forbidding the use of eminent domain to build carbon pipelines.

Connecting to the Summit Carbon Solutions proposed pipeline is seen as vital for Gevo's plans in Lake Preston.

As a result of the announcement by Gevo, its stock jumped nearly 10% prior to markets opening on Wednesday. READ MORE

Gevo plans to expand the North Dakota ethanol plant, which turns corn into fuel. It would convert the ethanol into higher-value aviation fuel in a process it calls alcohol to jet. Carbon capture is a key part of making sustainable aviation fuel.

“We don’t have to share pipelines. We don’t have to wait. We’re already doing it,” CEO Pat Gruber said of carbon capture at the North Dakota site.

Company previously broke ground in SD

Gevo’s South Dakota site relied on the planned Summit Carbon Solutions pipeline to take carbon dioxide captured from ethanol plants in five states to an underground storage site in North Dakota.

But the future of that project in South Dakota is in doubt because of landowner resistance, which has contributed to two rejected Summit permit applications in South Dakota and a ban on eminent domain for carbon pipelines adopted by the Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Larry Rhoden.

In 2022, Rhoden attended and spoke at Gevo’s groundbreaking near Lake Preston, where it proposed to build its plant in South Dakota. Rhoden was lieutenant governor at the time. Then-Gov. Kristi Noem said in a press release on the day of the groundbreaking that “businesses are choosing South Dakota because we are ‘Open for Business,’ and we give them the opportunity to succeed.” The press release described the Gevo project as the “largest economic investment in South Dakota history.”

On Thursday night, Rhoden’s office sent a statement in response to South Dakota Searchlight’s request for a comment. Rhoden said he’s pleased that Gevo still plans to develop a project in South Dakota, and he said “South Dakota offers one of the best environments in the nation for energy innovation and value-added agriculture.”

“Although I understand that Gevo is attracted to the efficiencies of building at their existing ethanol plant in North Dakota, I’m confident that when the timing is right, they’ll find that our communities, our workforce, and our commitment to responsible development make this the right place to build,” Rhoden said.

He concluded by flashing back to comments he made while signing House Bill 1052, the legislation that banned eminent domain for carbon pipelines in South Dakota. Eminent domain is a legal process for obtaining land access from owners, with compensation determined by a court. Its potential use in South Dakota for the Summit pipeline sparked opposition and litigation.

“As I said when I signed HB 1052, ‘I encourage Summit and others to view it as an opportunity for a needed reset,'” Rhoden said. “Gevo’s continued desire to invest here in the future encourages me that they’re taking that opportunity seriously.”

In Iowa, where Summit is based, the company is seeking to change its pipeline permit. Summit wants to remove North Dakota as the designated end point for the pipeline.

A spokesperson for Summit said Friday the change “keeps open the option to transport CO2 west through Nebraska or north through South Dakota,” reported the Iowa Capital Dispatch.

Gruber said the jet fuel production in North Dakota would be 30 million gallons a year, half of what was planned for South Dakota. But he said the 500 acres at Richardton could allow for expansion.

He said the jet fuel plant would cost about $500 million. Gruber noted that is substantially less than $2.6 billion it planned to spend on the South Dakota site.

Gevo is hosting a meeting Monday to answer questions for farmers and others in the Richardton area. READ MORE