CE+P granted additional extension on loan

EL CENTRO — The founder of California Ethanol and Power asked the county Board of Supervisors Tuesday for another extension on a $625,000 loan it issued him from public benefit in 2015.

The board grudgingly approved Dave Rubenstein’s request for a third extension on the principal amount through June 2021, although it made it clear it was not likely to approve a fourth extension.

Rubenstein reportedly used the loan for engineering work and to be installed on the power grid with the Imperial Irrigation District.

Supervisor Jesus Eduardo Escobar told Rubenstein he understood the situation, but pushed back on the excuse that the continued delays are COVID-19 related.

Escobar said while this might be true since March and probably another six to seven months in the future due to the loss in oil production, this loan goes back five years, well before there was a pandemic.

Rubenstein said COVID-19 did slow him down some, and that raising $950 million for the project is not an easy task.

“Everything is moving forward,” he said.

Escobar said he wanted to see verifying documents to see if this was true.

“We need to understand where they are at,” he said, adding verbal comments and text messages are not sufficient documents.

Rubenstein replied that they have been in contact with the county every quarter or three months.

Escobar said he was not hearing or seeing what he wanted to know about the loan, saying if one is making a hamburger, the meat would have to be included.

Supervisor Mike Kelley said the meat is probably still on the grill and has not been added yet.

“If that is not there, it is smoke and mirrors,” Escobar said. “Do you have specific contracts or a specific proposal from the bank?”

Supervisor Chairman Luis Plancarte said what is frustrating is every time the board meets with Rubenstein they need more information.

“(There) is interest and payment, and at the end

of the day, that is missing,” he said, adding if there is no money for the project, there will be no funds to pay the county what it is owed. Plancarte said he will approve the extension this time, but when it comes before the board again he will be asking more questions on the loan. “There is lots of information and data, but there are no payments on the loan,” he said.

Rubenstein said he thinks everything will be lined up by January, and asked the supervisors if he could make eight monthly payments of $6,400 to $6,500 rather than a lump payment of $80,000 in January.

While some members of the board seemed to be willing to make this change, Plancarte said he would not be willing to endorse the changing of the terms of the agree

ment without doing some research.

Plancarte also didn’t appear to think the project would ever materialize, saying he does not think it’s going to happen.

Rubenstein, who conceded there is no money but has investors right now, said he and his company looks at the county as a partner in this project.

“This is moving forward, but it would be easier to pay $6,500 a month than to come up with a big $80,000 check,” Rubenstein said.

Supervisor Ray Castillo said the supervisors could always bring it back to modify the terms of the payments.

“I don’t want the project to just go away.” Castillo said. CE+P Sugar Valley Energy plant proposes to produce up to 68 million gallons of fuel-grade ethanol from sugarcane

yearly. Sugar Valley would use the molasses created as a byproduct from the process to produce up to 740 million cubic feet of bio-methane gas per year and use the juiced sugarcane feedstock to generate up to 49 megawatts of electricity.

The site would also have a wastewater treatment plant capable of processing all wastewater from the property’s facilities, as well as 1 million gallons more from nearby businesses and homes.

Rubenstein has said he hopes to break ground on project before year’s end and begin production by 2023. He said the project has received a lot of support from the community.

“We have six local farmers who want to (grow) for us,” he said. “It will be one of the top crops in the county. It’s recession proof.”