US Ethanol Giant Faces Potential Sale After CEO Stepped Down

When Todd Becker took the top job at Green Plains Inc., one of the US’s largest ethanol producers, it was 2009 and the nation had just announced an expansion of its biofuels mandate two years earlier.

Fast forward to 2025 and the US is again in the midst of another biofuels boom, but one that Becker simply couldn’t capitalize on fast enough. After a 38% drop in the share price this year, Becker announced on Friday that he was stepping down, prompting fresh speculation of a sale.

Dwight Anderson, the founder of Ospraie Management LLC who teamed up with ...