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Ethanol Plant Location Determinants and County Comparative Advantage

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  • Lambert, D.M.
  • Wilcox, M.
  • English, A.
  • Stewart, L.

Abstract

The location of ethanol plants is determined by infrastructure, product and input markets, fiscal attributes of local communities, and state and federal incentives. This empirical analysis uses probit regression along with spatial clustering methods to analyze investment activity of ethanol plants at the county level for the lower U.S. 48 states from 2000 to 2007. The availability of feedstock dominates the site selection decision. Other factors, such as access to navigable rivers or railroads, product markets, producer credit and excise tax exemptions, and methyl tertiary-butyl ether bans provided some counties with a comparative advantage in attracting ethanol plants.

Suggested Citation

  • Lambert, D.M. & Wilcox, M. & English, A. & Stewart, L., 2008. "Ethanol Plant Location Determinants and County Comparative Advantage," Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 40(1), pages 117-135, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jagaec:v:40:y:2008:i:01:p:117-135_02
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    Cited by:

    1. T. Randall Fortenbery & Steven C. Deller & Lindsay Amiel, 2013. "The Location Decisions of Biodiesel Refineries," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 89(1), pages 118-136.
    2. Register, D. Lane & Lambert, Dayton M. & English, Burton C. & Jensen, Kimberly L. & Menard, R. Jamey & Wilcox, Michael D., 2012. "Geographical Analysis of US Green Sector Industry Concentration," 2012 Annual Meeting, February 4-7, 2012, Birmingham, Alabama 119742, Southern Agricultural Economics Association.
    3. Sant'Anna, Ana C. & Granco, Gabriel & Bergtold, Jason S. & Caldas, Marcellus M., 2015. "It’s all about location?: An analysis of the factors that affect the location decision of sugarcane processing mills in Goiás and Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil," 2015 AAEA & WAEA Joint Annual Meeting, July 26-28, San Francisco, California 205338, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    4. Sesmero, Juan P. & Perrin, Richard K. & Fulginiti, Lilyan E., 2012. "Technology, Markets, and Ethanol Plants Shutdown Price," 2012 Annual Meeting, August 12-14, 2012, Seattle, Washington 124915, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    5. Jason Wood & James Nolan, 2021. "Plant location decisions in the ethanol industry: a dynamic and spatial analysis," Computational Economics, Springer;Society for Computational Economics, vol. 58(1), pages 103-132, June.
    6. Lin, C.-Y. Cynthia & Yi, Fujin, 2012. "Ethanol Plant Investment in Canada: A Structural Model," Institute of Transportation Studies, Working Paper Series qt7vd043zr, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Davis.
    7. Juan P. Sesmero & Richard K. Perrin & Lilyan E. Fulginiti, 2016. "A Variable Cost Function for Corn Ethanol Plants in the Midwest," Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics/Revue canadienne d'agroeconomie, Canadian Agricultural Economics Society/Societe canadienne d'agroeconomie, vol. 64(3), pages 565-587, September.
    8. Akinfenwa, Samson O. & Qasmi, Bashir A., 2014. "Ethanol, the Agricultural Economy, and Rural Incomes in the United States: A Bivariate Econometric Approach," Agricultural and Resource Economics Review, Northeastern Agricultural and Resource Economics Association, vol. 43(2), pages 1-15, August.
    9. Brown, Jason P. & Weber, Jeremy G. & Wojan, Timothy R., 2013. "Emerging Energy Industries and Rural Growth," Economic Research Report 262215, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    10. Stevens, Andrew, 2015. "Fueling Local Water Pollution: Ethanol Refineries, Land Use, and Nitrate Runoff," 2015 AAEA & WAEA Joint Annual Meeting, July 26-28, San Francisco, California 205741, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    11. Stevens, Andrew W., 2021. "Ethanol Refineries and Local Land Use," 2021 Conference, August 17-31, 2021, Virtual 315304, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    12. Ani L. Katchova & Ana Claudia Sant’Anna, 2019. "Impact of Ethanol Plant Location on Corn Revenues for U.S. Farmers," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(22), pages 1-13, November.
    13. Sanwar A. Sunny & Cheng Shu, 2019. "Investments, incentives, and innovation: geographical clustering dynamics as drivers of sustainable entrepreneurship," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 52(4), pages 905-927, April.
    14. John L. Pender & Jeremy G. Weber & Jason P. Brown, 2014. "Sustainable Rural Development and Wealth Creation," Economic Development Quarterly, , vol. 28(1), pages 73-86, February.
    15. Fatal, Yehushua S. & Thurman, Walter N., 2014. "The Response of Corn Acreage to Ethanol Plant Siting," Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Southern Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 46(2), pages 1-15, May.
    16. W. Richard Goe & Anirban Mukherjee, 2013. "The implications of corn-based ethanol production for non-metropolitan development in the North Central region of the US," Chapters, in: Gary Paul Green (ed.), Handbook of Rural Development, chapter 12, pages i-ii, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    17. Galinato, Suzette P. & Young, Douglas L. & Frear, Craig S. & Yoder, Jonathan K., 2011. "Will Washington Provide Its Own Crop Feedstocks for Biofuels?," Western Economics Forum, Western Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 10(1), pages 1-11.
    18. Zhang, Wendong & Irwin, Elena G. & Nickerson, Cynthia J., 2012. "The Expanding Ethanol Market and Farmland Values: Identifying the Changing Influence of Proximity to Agricultural Delivery Points," 2012 Annual Meeting, August 12-14, 2012, Seattle, Washington 124690, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • R1 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics
    • R3 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Real Estate Markets, Spatial Production Analysis, and Firm Location

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