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Gold/Mining/Energy : Archer Daniels Midland -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: richardred who wrote (54)	10/17/2006 3:47:00 PM
From: Edscharp	Respond to of 84

ADM Wins Biodiesel Bet biz.yahoo.com Monday October 16, 5:09 pm ET By Jack Uldrich It's no secret that Archer Daniels Midland (NYSE: ADM - News) has long benefited from federal government agricultural subsidies. But the company also profits handsomely from certain government regulations -- something I encouraged investors to keep on an eye on in this article. Last year, fellow fool Brian Gorman noted that ADM was placing a large bet on biodiesel. Specifically, he pointed out that the company was planning to build a large production facility that would have the capacity to produce 50 million gallons of biodiesel -- more than double the estimated amount sold in the United States in 2005. Well, it now appears that bet is about to be rewarded. On Sunday, a new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulation mandating ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel took effect. The rule immediately lowers by 97% the amount of sulfur content permitted in diesel fuel. Biodiesel, which is nearly sulfur-free, is well-positioned to meet the requirements of the new diesel regulations. Furthermore, the new regulations will dramatically reduce soot emissions, which should help us all breathe a little easier. It'll also go a long way toward alleviating the perception that diesel engines are dirty and smelly, a factor that has prevented a great many Americans from embracing diesel technology. As this negative perception of diesel fades, its superior fuel economy -- estimated between 20% and 40% better than gasoline -- should begin to shine ever brighter. Growing consumer demand should encourage many automobile manufacturers to produce more diesel vehicles, which presently represent only 3.2% of the vehicles manufactured in America. In fact, DaimlerChrysler (NYSE: DCX - News) is introducing a new Mercedes diesel vehicle next week, and a Grand Jeep Cherokee next year. After that, Honda (NYSE: HMC - News) is expected to have a diesel Accord on the U.S. market by 2009, while GM (NYSE: GM - News) has announced that it will have a diesel-powered light truck by 2010. As a result of this increased production, diesel vehicles are expected to represent 10% of all the vehicles sold in the U.S. by 2015. This is great news for ADM; thanks to its new plant, it will be one the leading suppliers of the biodiesel fueling these vehicles.