Paul Casper – Development and M&A

Mr. Casper is also one of the most experienced industry executives in the United States regarding ethanol plant site selection and the start-up of ethanol plants. During the past 10 years, he has been the key person in site selection for and start-up of over 20 ethanol plants for Fagen, Inc. He has also been a key person in the start-up of other large agricultural processing plants. To fund these ethanol and other processing plants, Mr. Casper has raised over $1 billion in equity and debt capital, largely from farmers, local investors and industry banks.

Mr. Casper has a history of superb relationships with farmers and community leaders in gaining support and capital for ethanol plants. He has made over 1,000 presentations to farmers, government and regulatory authorities, local business leaders, bankers, attorneys and land owners about organizing and building ethanol plants.

In 1993, Mr. Casper led a team that formed the South Dakota Soybean Processors Cooperative (SDSP), the largest soybean cooperative organization in the U.S., where he served as Chairman of the Board of Directors for 12 years. In 1994 he was featured on the cover of Top Producer Magazine and was called “The Value Added Evangelist” because of his belief in having local community ownership in agricultural processes. In 1998 he participated in international agricultural projects in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan with South Dakota Senator Tim Johnson that enabled the SDSP to sell products directly to the city of Beijing. The government of Western Australia invited Mr. Casper in 1999 to consult with local agricultural businessmen and farmers on forming their own processing companies to compete and sell their own farmer products directly into the world market.

Mr. Casper is a successful advocate of agriculture and leader in national agricultural policy formation and implementation for several national agricultural organizations. Mr. Casper attended South Dakota State University.