Valero keeping an eye out for ethanol acquisitions as crush margins begin to shrink

In Texas, Valero is on the hunt for acquisitions, not only in the refining space but also in biofuels. The company’s biofuels assets performed well last year but now that a bumper corn crop is expected, mixed with poor blending economics due to low gasoline prices, some ethanol producers may find themselves in a pinch and look to mothball or sell out. Valero plans to keep an eye on the market to look for any of those more interesting assets that may soon find themselves for sale.