Green Plains Inc. (GPRE) Business

Item 1. Business.

References to “we,” “us,” “our,” “Green Plains,” or the “company” refer to Green Plains Inc. and its subsidiaries.

Overview

Incorporated in Iowa, Green Plains is a renewable fuels and agricultural technology company focused on producing low-cost, low-CI ethanol and related co-products, including high protein feeds and corn oil from locally sourced corn. Our goal is to create value through an operational excellence focus including disciplined operations, cost leadership and carbon reduction as we position the company to benefit from expanding low-carbon fuel markets.

Founded in 2004, Green Plains now owns nine strategically located plants across the Midwest, capable of processing approximately 287 million bushels of corn annually, when all plants are operating. Today, our focus is on operating safely, efficiently and cost-effectively while reducing the CI of our products and maintaining financial flexibility to support long term growth. During the year, under new leadership, the company completed targeted asset sales, strengthened liquidity and reduced debt, positioning Green Plains to capture value from the next phase of the low-carbon transition. Our streamlined platform is positioned to create value through our focus on operational excellence, continuous improvement and disciplined capital allocation.

We group our business activities into the following two operating segments to manage performance:

•Ethanol Production. Our ethanol production segment includes the production, storage and transportation of ethanol, distillers grains, Ultra-High Protein and renewable corn oil at nine biorefineries in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota and Nebraska. At capacity, our nine facilities are capable of processing approximately 287 million bushels of corn per year and producing approximately 850 million gallons of ethanol, 2.0 million tons of distillers grains and Ultra-High Protein, and 296 million pounds of renewable corn oil, a low-carbon feedstock for biodiesel and renewable diesel. Our eight facilities currently in operation are capable of processing approximately 246 million bushels of corn and producing 730 million gallons of ethanol, 1.7 million tons of distillers grains and Ultra-High Protein, and 254 million pounds of renewable corn oil.

•Agribusiness and Energy Services. Our agribusiness and energy services segment includes grain procurement, storage and commodity marketing. We market our ethanol through a 3rd party and also sell and distribute our ethanol plant co-products, including distillers grains and corn oil. We also buy and sell natural gas and other commodities in various markets.

Business Strategy

Ethanol is a valuable low CI oxygenate that comprises approximately 10.1% of the domestic surface transportation gasoline supply in the U.S. with the potential to grow with increased offering of higher blends, including E15 and E85. Additionally, government incentives to produce SAF through ATJ pathways could provide additional demand for low-CI ethanol for conversion to SAF. A critical step to significantly reduce the CI of ethanol is carbon capture technology, which we are deploying at multiple locations. SAF is a drop-in fuel, chemically identical to petroleum-based jet fuel and can be blended into the fuel supply at varying levels. There is an increasing focus on using this fuel to reduce the carbon footprint of air travel. SAF can be produced from vegetable and waste oil feedstocks, such as our renewable corn oil.

As part of our carbon reduction strategy, we successfully commenced CCS operations at our three Nebraska biorefineries, which are connected to the Trailblazer CO2 Pipeline. In addition we have committed our four Iowa and Minnesota facilities to Summit Carbon Solutions, which publicly projects operations commencing in 2028. CCS will lower GHG emissions through the capture of biogenic carbon dioxide at each of these biorefineries, significantly lowering their CI, in some cases by more than half. We financed the build and installation of carbon capture equipment at our three Nebraska plants with Tallgrass and expect to begin repayment during the first quarter of 2026. There are very few ethanol production facilities with carbon capture in place today, and we are among the first to produce lower-CI ethanol at scale. In addition, we are exploring alternative options for biogenic carbon dioxide utilization where pipeline transport or direct injection may not be feasible. Reducing the CI of our ethanol through CCS operations, improving efficiency at our ethanol plants and purchasing RECs is allowing us to benefit from state, federal and foreign clean fuel programs, including LCFS programs at the state level and federal tax credits under the IRA, including the Section 45Z Clean Fuel Production Credit, and could

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position our low-carbon ethanol as a potential feedstock for ATJ pathways to produce SAF, other low carbon fuels and export markets.

We believe that global demand for protein will continue to rise, requiring larger amounts of high protein feed for pets, livestock and aquaculture. While faced with growing competition from expanded U.S. soy crushing capacity, we aim to utilize our protein capabilities to diversify our product offering and optimize our client base.

We began producing Ultra-High Protein using FQT's MSC™ technology in 2020 and have deployed this technology across four of our biorefinery locations to help meet growing demand for protein feed ingredients and low-carbon renewable corn oil to use as a feedstock for producing advanced biofuels such as renewable diesel, biodiesel and SAF, as the MSC™ technology enhances renewable corn oil yields. The biorefineries producing Ultra-High Protein, a feed ingredient with protein concentrations of 50% or greater and yeast concentrations of 25%, have also increased renewable corn oil yields.

In September 2022, we broke ground at our biorefinery in Shenandoah, Iowa, as the first location to deploy FQT's CST™ at commercial scale, and during 2024 the company successfully commissioned the CST™ equipment in the Shenandoah facility. FQT’s CST™ allows for the production of both food and industrial grade dextrose at a dry mill ethanol plant to target applications in food production, in addition to serving as a feedstock for renewable chemicals and synthetic biology. The facility has a rated capacity of 60 million pounds of product per year. The facility has been idled since the first quarter of 2025 as the company focuses on optimizing its product mix to maximize current returns. The decision to temporarily pause operations presents an opportunity to make some related infrastructure improvements, which would require additional investment.

In July 2023, we announced a technology collaboration with Equilon Enterprises LLC, which allows us to use FQT’s precision separation and processing technology with Shell Fiber Conversion Technology. The two technologies combine fermentation, mechanical separation and processing, and fiber conversion into one platform. This has the potential to liberate nearly all of the remaining distillers corn oil currently bound in the fiber fraction of the corn kernel, generate cellulosic sugars for production of low-carbon ethanol, and enhance and expand available high protein to produce high-quality ingredients for global pet, livestock and aquaculture diets. The large-scale demonstration facility is operational and technology and product development has continued to advance through 2025.

Competitive Strengths

We are focused on managing commodity price risks, improving operational and transportation efficiencies and optimizing market opportunities to create an efficient platform with diversified income streams. Our competitive strengths include:

Disciplined Risk Management. Risk management is a core competency and we use a variety of sophisticated risk management tools and hedging strategies to maintain a disciplined approach. Our internally developed operating margin management system allows us to monitor commodity price risk exposure in the spot market and on the forward curve at each of our operations and helps us to lock in favorable margins, when available, or if appropriate, temporarily reduce production during periods of compressed margins.

Technology Integration. Over our history, we have incorporated new technologies like renewable corn oil extraction and Selective Milling Technology™ into our manufacturing processes that have enabled us to run more efficiently and improve our yields and financial results. Through our ownership of FQT and other partnerships, we are currently reviewing a number of initiatives to further improve operational efficiencies that we believe will lead to improved margins.

FQT provides additional intellectual property rights, including those aimed at developing and implementing proven, value-added agriculture, food and industrial biotechnology systems, CST™ and MSC™, as well as engineering expertise for designing ethanol facilities with lower energy use, operational expenses and carbon intensity. We continue to evaluate additional technological opportunities to expand our capabilities and product offerings in the coming years.

Proven Leadership Team. Our senior leadership team has specific expertise across all of our businesses, including plant operations and management, commodity markets and risk management, ingredient nutrition, marketing and innovation, regulatory, legal, policy, and ethanol marketing and distribution. Our leadership team’s level of operational and financial expertise is essential to successfully executing our business strategies.

Operational Excellence. Our facilities are operated by skilled and experienced personnel who are encouraged to

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collaborate and share knowledge and expertise across business segments and locations. We remain committed to driving continuous operational improvements, leveraging advanced systems that provide real-time production data to monitor production activity and optimize performance.

Risk Management and Hedging Activities

Our margins are highly dependent on commodity prices, particularly for ethanol, corn, distillers grains, Ultra-High Protein, renewable corn oil and natural gas. Since market price fluctuations among these commodities are not always correlated, ethanol production has been and may continue to be unprofitable at times. From time to time, we use a variety of risk management tools and hedging strategies to monitor real-time operating price risk exposure at each of our operations in an effort to obtain favorable margins, when available.

As market conditions warrant, we use forward contracts to sell a portion of our ethanol, distillers grains, Ultra-High Protein and renewable corn oil production or buy some of the corn, natural gas, or ethanol we need to partially offset commodity price volatility. We also engage in other hedging transactions involving exchange-traded futures contracts for corn, natural gas, ethanol, soybeans, soybean meal and soybean oil. The financial impact of these activities depends on the price of the commodities involved and our ability to physically receive or deliver those commodities.

Hedging arrangements expose us to risk of financial loss when the counterparty defaults on its contract or, in the case of exchange-traded contracts, when the expected differential between the price of the underlying commodity and physical commodity changes. Hedging activities can result in losses when a position is purchased in a declining market or sold in a rising market. Hedging losses may be offset by a decreased cash price for corn and natural gas and an increased cash price for ethanol, distillers grains, Ultra-High Protein and renewable corn oil. Depending on the circumstance, we vary the amount of hedging or other risk mitigation strategies we undertake and sometimes choose not to engage in hedging or risk management transactions at all.

Recent Developments

The following is a summary of our significant recent developments. Additional information about these items can be found elsewhere in this report or in previous reports filed with the SEC.

CCS Commencing Operations

CCS equipment at our three Nebraska plants began operations during the fourth quarter of 2025, and is delivering biogenic carbon dioxide to the Tallgrass Trailblazer pipeline for permanent sequestration. Successful sequestration has allowed the company to further reduce its CI, triggering an increase in the amount of income tax benefit recognizable from Section 45Z production tax credits in the current period and in future periods.

Production Tax Credits

The company has been and expects to continue to benefit from certain clean energy related tax credits as a result of recent changes in legislation. Six of our eight operating ethanol plants have generated production tax credits under Section 45Z in 2025 and all eight are projected to generate these credits in 2026. The company has purchased RECs during the year ended December 31, 2025 to lower CI scores at certain plants. Based on production and CI scores for the year ended December 31, 2025, the company recorded income tax benefit of $54.2 million, net of a valuation allowance, related to Section 45Z production tax credits at the six qualifying plants.

Tax Credit Purchase Agreement

On September 16, 2025, the company entered into an agreement, pursuant to which the company agreed to supply production tax credits available under Section 45Z to a buyer from the production of the company's ethanol at its three Nebraska facilities between January 1, 2025 and December 31, 2025. On December 10, 2025, the agreement was amended to add Section 45Z production tax credits produced at three more of the company's facilities. All credits generated during the year ended December 31, 2025, were sold in accordance with these agreements.

Convertible Debt Exchange

On October 27, 2025, the company executed separate, privately negotiated exchange agreements with certain of the holders of its existing 2.25% Convertible Senior Notes due 2027 (the “2027 Notes”) to exchange (the “exchange transactions”) $170 million aggregate principal amount of the 2027 Notes for $170 million of newly issued 5.25%

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Convertible Senior Notes due November 2030 (the “2030 Notes”). Additionally, the company completed separate, privately negotiated subscription agreements pursuant to which it issued $30 million of 2030 Notes for $30 million in cash (the “subscription transactions”). $200 million in aggregate principal amount of the 2030 Notes is now outstanding, and $60 million in aggregate principal amount of the 2027 Notes remains outstanding with existing terms unchanged.

The company used approximately $30 million of the net proceeds from the subscription transactions to repurchase approximately 2.9 million shares of its common stock from certain holders participating in the subscription transactions.

The 2030 Notes bear interest at a rate of 5.25% per year, payable on May 1 and November 1 of each year, beginning May 1, 2026. The notes will be general senior, unsecured obligations of the company. The initial conversion rate of the 2030 Notes is 63.6132 shares of common stock per $1,000 principal amount of 2030 Notes (equivalent to an initial conversion price of approximately $15.72 per share of common stock, which represents a conversion premium of approximately 50% over the offering price of our common stock), and is subject to customary anti-dilution adjustments.

Green Plains Obion LLC Disposition

On August 27, 2025, the company announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Green Plains Obion LLC, entered into an asset purchase agreement for the sale of the ethanol plant located in Rives, Tennessee, to POET Biorefining - Obion, LLC. On September 25, 2025, the company closed on the sale and received proceeds of $170 million plus related working capital (the “Obion Transaction”). A gain of $35.8 million was recorded in gain on sale of assets, net on the consolidated statements of operations. The proceeds from the sale were used to repay the outstanding balance of the Junior Notes due 2026 and to supplement corporate liquidity.

Junior Notes and Warrant Amendments

On May 7, 2025, the company amended its $125 million of Junior Notes to extend the maturity date to May 15, 2026, with an amendment fee of 2.0% added to the principal balance of the Junior Notes, payable at the maturity date. Further, the strike price of the warrants was revised from $22.00 to $0.01 and the maturity date extended from April 28, 2026 to December 31, 2029.

On August 10, 2025, the company amended and restated the indenture covering the Junior Notes with BlackRock to extend the maturity date to September 15, 2026, with an amendment fee of 2.5% added to the principal balance of the Junior Notes, payable at the maturity date. The interest rate increased by 0.5% after the amendment, and by an additional 0.5% each quarter on each scheduled interest payment date. The amendment added certain financial covenant requirements, including restrictions on additional debt and certain transfer of assets. Also as part of the amendment, the company executed a subscription agreement with certain funds and accounts under management by BlackRock pursuant to which the company agreed to issue, and certain funds and accounts under management by BlackRock purchased, 3,250,000 stock warrants at a strike price of $0.01 per share with a ten year exercise period. The amendment also included the right for such funds and accounts to exchange up to 750,000 warrants for a pro rata share of $6 million of outstanding principal of Junior Notes. The subscription agreement obligated the company to register for resale the shares of common stock underlying warrants issued to BlackRock. On September 25, 2025, proceeds from the Obion Transaction were used to fully retire the Junior Notes. All warrants issued to BlackRock were exercised during the year ended December 31, 2025.

GP Turnkey Tharaldson Disposition

On June 30, 2025, the company sold its 50% investment in GP Turnkey Tharaldson for $24.3 million. A pretax loss of $26.9 million was recorded during year ended December 31, 2025.

Ancora Credit Facility and Warrants

On May 7, 2025, the company entered into a secured $30 million revolving credit facility with Ancora Alternatives LLC, that matured on July 30, 2025. The facility bore interest at 10% on borrowings and had a 0.5% fee on the unused balance. Interest and fees were due on the 5th of each month. Also executed as part of the credit facility, the company issued 1,504,140 stock warrants at a strike price of $0.01 per share. The warrants had a ten year exercise period. On August 29, 2025, the Ancora warrants were fully exercised.

Ethanol Marketing Agreement with Eco-Energy, LLC

On April 16, 2025, the company entered into an ethanol marketing agreement with Eco-Energy, LLC. The marketing agreement is for a term of five years, with certain early termination rights, and requires the company to sell exclusively to Eco-Energy LLC, and for Eco-Energy LLC to purchase from the company all fuel grade ethanol, or other ethanol specifications as agreed to for a predetermined market-based marketing fee that may be adjusted based on gallons shipped.

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Eco-Energy, LLC has also agreed to handle certain back office duties related to the ethanol marketing and logistics across the company's platform, providing end-to-end support to optimize value, expand market access and improve supply chain efficiency. On April 14, 2025, a conforming amendment was entered into on the $350 million revolver to accommodate concentration risk with Eco-Energy, LLC.

Cooperation Agreement

On April 11, 2025, the company entered into a Cooperation Agreement with Ancora Holdings Group, LLC, a long-term shareholder, which outlines certain compositional changes to the Board, and provides for a standstill, voting commitment and other customary provisions.

The execution of the Cooperation agreement resulted in the appointment of three individuals as independent members to the Board on April 14, 2025, Steve Furcich, Carl Grassi, and Patrick Sweeney. These individuals possess additive experience in key areas such as the agriculture and commodities sector, capital allocation, finance, long-term planning, and strategic reviews and transactions. From April 14, 2025, through the Annual Meeting, the appointments resulted in an expansion of the Board to ten members. The Board was reduced to eight members due to Ejnar A. Knudsen III and Alain Treuer not standing for re-election at the 2025 Annual Meeting.

Leadership Transition

On February 28, 2025, the company announced the departure of Todd Becker as President and Chief Executive Officer and member of the Board, effective March 1, 2025.

Effective March 1, 2025, the Board appointed Michelle Mapes, Chief Legal & Administration Officer, as Interim Principal Executive Officer, and also appointed an executive committee comprised of Ms. Mapes, Jamie Herbert, Chief Human Resource Officer, Chris Osowski, Executive Vice President, Operations and Technology, and Imre Havasi, Senior Vice President – Head of Trading and Commercial Operations, which led the company until Mr. Becker’s successor was appointed. As part of the company’s corporate reorganization, Michelle Mapes' position as Chief Legal and Administration Officer and Corporate Secretary was contractually agreed to be eliminated at December 31, 2025 pursuant to an amendment to her employment contract dated February 27, 2025. Both Grant Kadavy's position of EVP - Commercial Operations and Leslie van der Meulen's position of EVP - Product Marketing and Innovation were eliminated, effective February 6, 2025.

On August 19, 2025, the Board of Directors of the company appointed Chris Osowski as Chief Executive Officer and member of the Board of Directors of the company, effective immediately. Mr. Osowski served as a member of the company’s Executive Committee since March 2025 and served as Executive Vice President, Operations and Technology since January 2022. Also, in connection with Mr. Osowski’s appointment, the company promoted Trent Collins to serve as Senior Vice President of Operations.

On January 5, 2026, the Board of Directors of the company appointed Ann Reis to serve as Chief Financial Officer of the company effective January 6, 2026, who succeeds Phil Boggs who departed the company on January 5, 2026.

On January 12, 2026, the company announced the appointment of Ryan Loneman to serve as the General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of the company effective January 26, 2026.

Restructuring Costs

As part of the strategic review process, in early 2025, the company launched a corporate reorganization and cost reduction initiative that has significantly reduced selling, general and administrative expenses on an ongoing basis. As part of this initiative, the company identified approximately $50 million of financial improvement annually, inclusive of savings from idling the Fairmont, Minnesota facility, transitioning to a third party ethanol marketer, and realigning corporate and trade group selling, general and administrative functions to reflect current strategic priorities. As a result of the reorganization, the company recorded one-time restructuring costs of $24.3 million during the year ended December 31, 2025, which includes severance related to the departure of its former CEO.

Strategic Review

On August 27, 2025, the company announced the conclusion of its strategic review process, which began in February 2024. Following a comprehensive evaluation, the Board of Directors considered a range of alternatives and determined that the company is best positioned to deliver shareholder value by executing its current strategy under existing leadership. This outcome of the review has provided a roadmap for continued operational execution and capital discipline.

Idling of Clean Sugar Technology facility in Shenandoah, Iowa

During the first quarter, the company idled its operations at the CST™ facility in Shenandoah, Iowa, as the company

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focuses on optimizing its product mix to maximize current returns. The decision to temporarily pause operations presents an opportunity to make some related infrastructure improvements, which would require additional investment.

Idling of Fairmont, Minnesota Plant

In January 2025, the company idled its 119 million gallon ethanol plant in Fairmont, Minnesota as a result of persistent margin pressures, and the majority of the staff was terminated. The company is continuing to monitor the potential of 45Z production tax credit monetization, which would be further enhanced by carbon capture and sequestration. This would fundamentally reshape the economics of the facility.

Operating Segments

Ethanol Production Segment

Industry Overview. Ethanol, also known as ethyl alcohol or grain alcohol, is a colorless liquid produced by fermenting carbohydrates found in a number of different types of grains, such as corn, wheat and sorghum, and other cellulosic matter found in plants. Most of the ethanol produced in the United States is made from corn, which can be handled efficiently and is in greater supply than other grains. Corn contains large quantities of carbohydrates that convert into glucose more easily than most other kinds of biomass. According to the USDA, on average, a 56 pound bushel of corn produces approximately 2.9 gallons of ethanol, 17 pounds of dried distillers grains and 0.6 pounds of corn oil. Outside of the United States, sugarcane is the primary feedstock used to produce ethanol.

Ethanol is a significant component of the biofuels industry, which includes all transportation fuels derived from renewable biological materials. Ethanol is an excellent oxygenate and source of octane. When added to petroleum-based transportation fuels, oxygenates reduce vehicle emissions. Ethanol is the most economical oxygenate and source of octane available on the market and its production costs are competitive with gasoline.

Ethanol Plants. We own nine ethanol plants, located in five states, that produce ethanol, distillers grains, Ultra-High Protein and renewable corn oil.

The capacity disclosed below has been adjusted in the current period to represent the plants proven abilities to produce beyond their nameplate capacity. The company's historical capacity disclosures were based on plant nameplate capacity. The increased capacity is the result of a projection of annual capacity based on actual production levels achieved, and was not due to significant plant expansion or enhancement during the period.

(1)Produces Ultra-High Protein.

(2)Connected to Tallgrass Trailblazer Pipeline.

(3)Committed to Summit Carbon Solutions Pipeline.

(4)Plant idled in January 2025.

Our business is directly affected by the supply and demand for ethanol and other fuels in the markets served by our assets. Miles driven typically increase during the spring and summer months related to vacation travel, followed closely by the fall season due to holiday travel.

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Corn Feedstock and Ethanol Production. Our plants use corn as feedstock in a dry mill ethanol production process. Each of our plants requires on average approximately 32 million bushels of corn annually, depending on its production capacity. The price and availability of corn are subject to significant fluctuations driven by a number of factors that affect commodity prices in general, including crop conditions, weather, governmental programs, freight costs and global demand. Ethanol producers are generally unable to pass increased corn costs to customers.

Our corn supply is obtained primarily from local markets. We use cash and forward purchase contracts with grain producers and elevators to buy corn. We maintain direct relationships with local farmers, grain elevators and cooperatives, which serve as our primary sources of grain feedstock for all ten of our ethanol plants. This allows us to purchase much of the corn we need directly from farmers throughout the year. Each of our plants is also situated on rail lines or has other logistical solutions to access corn supplies from other regions of the country should local supplies become insufficient.

Corn is received at the plant by truck or rail then weighed and unloaded into a receiving building. Grain storage facilities are used to inventory grain that is passed through a scalper to remove rocks and debris prior to processing. The corn is then transported to a hammer mill where it is ground into flour and conveyed into a slurry tank for enzymatic processing. Water, heat and enzymes are added to convert the complex starch molecules into simpler carbohydrates. The slurry is heated to reduce the potential of microbial contamination and pumped into a liquefaction tank where additional enzymes are added. Next, the grain slurry is pumped into fermenters, where yeast, enzymes, and nutrients are added and the fermentation process is started. A beer column, within the distillation system, separates the alcohol from the spent grain mash. The alcohol is dehydrated to 200-proof alcohol and pumped into a holding tank and blended with approximately 2% denaturant as it is pumped into finished product storage tanks.

Distillers Grains. The spent grain mash is pumped from the beer column into a decanter-type centrifuge for dewatering. The water, or thin stillage, is pumped from the centrifuge into an evaporator, where it is concentrated into a thick syrup. The solids, or wet cake, that exit the centrifuge are conveyed to the dryer system and dried at varying temperatures to produce distillers grains. Syrup is reapplied to the wet cake prior to drying to provide additional nutrients. Distillers grains, the principal co-product of the ethanol production process, are used as mid-protein, high-energy animal feed and marketed to the dairy, beef, swine and poultry industries.

We can produce three forms of distillers grains, depending on the number of times the solids are passed through the dryer system:

•wet distillers grains, which contain approximately 65% to 70% moisture, have a shelf life of approximately three days and is therefore sold to dairies or feedlots within the immediate vicinity of our plants;

•modified wet distillers grains, which is dried further to approximately 50% to 55% moisture, have a shelf life of approximately three weeks and are marketed to regional dairies and feedlots; and

•dried distillers grains, which have been dried more extensively to approximately 10% to 12% moisture, have an almost indefinite shelf life and may be stored, sold and shipped to any market.

Ultra-High Protein. Ultra-High Protein is fermented corn protein produced by further processing of the spent grain mash from the beer column. The spent grain is processed using FQT’s MSC™ technology, which contains a series of screening equipment to remove fiber from the spent grain which is sent to the distillers grain dryer. The remaining product is washed and clarified into a wet protein stream which is dried in a ring dryer to produce Ultra-High Protein meal with protein concentrations of approximately 50%. Our specialty feed ingredient, Sequence™ has protein concentrations of approximately 60%.

Renewable Corn Oil. Renewable corn oil systems extract non-edible renewable corn oil from the thin stillage evaporation process immediately before the production of distillers grains. Renewable corn oil is produced by processing the syrup through a decanter-style, or disk-stack, centrifuge. The centrifuges separate the relatively light renewable corn oil from the heavier components of the syrup. Across our entire platform, we extract on average approximately 1.0 pound of renewable corn oil per bushel of corn used to produce ethanol. Industrial uses for renewable corn oil are primarily as a feedstock for renewable diesel and biodiesel. Additionally, it is also used as a livestock feed additive.

Natural Gas. Depending on production parameters, our ethanol plants use on average approximately 27,000 BTUs of natural gas per gallon of production. We have service agreements to acquire the natural gas we need and transport the gas through pipelines to our plants.

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Electricity. Our plants require on average approximately 0.9 kilowatt hours of electricity per gallon of production. Local utilities supply the necessary electricity to all of our ethanol plants.

Water. While some of our plants satisfy a majority of their water requirements from wells located on their respective properties, each plant also obtains drinkable water from local municipal water sources. Each facility either uses city water or operates a filtration system to purify the well water that is used for its operations. Local municipalities supply all of the necessary water for our plants that do not have onsite wells. Most of the water used in an ethanol plant is recycled in the production process.

Transportation, Delivery and Terminal Services. Most of our ethanol plants are situated near major highways or rail lines to ensure efficient product movement. Deliveries within 150 miles of our plants and the fuel terminal facility are generally transported by truck. Deliveries to distant markets are shipped using major U.S. rail carriers that can switch cars to other major railroads, allowing our plants to ship product throughout the United States and to international export terminals. As of December 31, 2025, the leased railcar fleet consisted of approximately 1,944 ethanol railcars with an aggregate capacity of 57.7 mmg, and 860 hopper and tank cars to transport other co-products and raw materials. We expect the railcar volumetric capacity to fluctuate over the normal course of business as the existing railcar leases expire and we enter into or acquire new railcar leases. The company owns and operates one fuel terminal with a storage capacity of approximately 180 thousand gallons and throughput capacity of approximately 40 mmgy.

Agribusiness and Energy Services Segment

Our agribusiness and energy services segment includes grain storage at our ethanol plants of approximately 12.0 million bushels, detailed in the following table:

(1)Plant idled in January 2025.

We buy bulk grain, primarily corn, from area producers, and provide grain drying and storage services to those producers. The grain is used as feedstock for our ethanol plants. Bulk grain commodities are traded on commodity exchanges and inventory values are affected by changes in these markets. To mitigate risks related to market fluctuations from purchase and sale commitments of grain, as well as grain held in inventory, we enter into exchange-traded futures and options contracts that function as economic and designated accounting hedges at times.

Seasonality is present within our agribusiness operations. The fall harvest period typically results in higher handling margins and stronger financial results during the fourth quarter of each year.

Through Green Plains Trade, we historically provided marketing services for our nine ethanol plants for all of the co-products produced at these locations as well as marketed ethanol for a third party, which ceased in April of 2025, and continue to provide marketing services to our ethanol plants for natural gas procurement. Green Plains Trade ceased marketing ethanol produced by the plants in April of 2025, but continues to market all other co-products. Eco-Energy, LLC now markets the ethanol produced by the plants.

Our ethanol is marketed by Eco-Energy LLC to local, regional, national and international customers. We also purchase ethanol from independent producers for pricing arbitrage from time to time. Our ethanol is sold to various markets under

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sales agreements with integrated energy companies; retailers, traders and resellers in the United States and buyers for export to Canada. Under these agreements, ethanol is priced under both fixed and indexed pricing arrangements.

We market distillers grains to local, domestic and international markets through Green Plains Trade. The bulk of our demand is delivered to geographic regions that do not have significant local corn, distillers grains or high protein ingredients production. We sell to international markets indirectly through exporters. Access to diversified markets allows us to sell product to customers offering the highest net price.

Our renewable corn oil is sold primarily to renewable diesel and biodiesel plants and, to a lesser extent, feedlot and poultry markets. We transport our renewable corn oil by truck to locations in a close proximity to our ethanol plants primarily in the southeastern and midwestern regions of the United States. We also transport renewable corn oil by rail to national markets as well as to exporters for shipment on vessels to international markets.

We provide marketing services of natural gas to our ethanol plants including the procurement of both the pipeline capacity and natural gas. We also enhance the value by aggregating volumes at various storage facilities which can be sold to either the plants or various intermediary markets and end markets.

For more information about our segments, refer to Item 7. - Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in this report.

Our Competition

Domestic Ethanol Competitors

We are one of the largest consolidated owners of ethanol plants in the United States. We compete with other domestic ethanol producers in a highly fragmented industry. Our competitors also include plants owned by farmers, cooperatives, oil refiners and retail fuel operators. These competitors may continue to operate their plants even when market conditions are not favorable due to the benefits realized from their other operations and lower cost structures.

As of December 31, 2025, the top four producers accounted for approximately 39% of the domestic production capacity with production capacities ranging from 850 mmgy to 3,146 mmgy. Demand for corn from ethanol plants and other corn consumers exists in all areas and regions in which we operate. According to the Renewable Fuels Association, there were 114 operational plants in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota and Nebraska, which are the states where we have production facilities as of December 31, 2025. The largest concentration of operational plants is located in Iowa, Nebraska and Illinois, where approximately 50% of all operational production capacity is located.

Foreign Ethanol Competitors

We also compete globally with production from other countries. Brazil is the second largest ethanol producer in the world after the United States. Brazil primarily produces ethanol made from sugarcane, which may be less expensive to produce than ethanol made from corn depending on feedstock prices. Under the RFS, certain parties are obligated to meet an advanced biofuel standard, and Brazilian sugarcane ethanol qualifies as an advanced biofuel. Any significant additional ethanol production capacity, or reduced demand for gasoline, could create excess supply in world markets, resulting in lower ethanol prices throughout the world, including the United States.

Other Competition

Alternative fuels, gasoline oxygenates and ethanol production methods are continually under development. Ethanol production technologies also continue to evolve. We anticipate changes could occur primarily in the area of cellulosic ethanol, or from biodigesters at landfills or livestock production facilities. Since all of our plants are designed as single-feedstock facilities, adapting our plants for a different feedstock or process system would require additional capital investments and retooling which could be cost prohibitive, and would require new RFS pathways to be approved by the EPA. Our distillers grains and Ultra-High Protein feed ingredients compete against other feed ingredients including soybean meal, canola meal, ground corn, corn gluten meal and distillers grains from other ethanol producers domestically and abroad. Our renewable corn oil competes against vegetable oils such as soybean oil, canola oil, and to some extent palm oil, as well as waste feedstocks including used cooking oil, animal fats and tallow.

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Regulatory Matters

Government Ethanol Programs and Policies

We are sensitive to domestic and foreign governmental policies that impact ethanol, feedstocks for renewable fuels and decarbonization, which in turn may impact the volume of ethanol and other ingredients we produce. Legislation and regulatory rule making at the federal, state and international level can impact us across all business segments. Refer to Item 7. - Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in this report for a detailed discussion of these topics.

Environmental and Other Regulation

Our operations are subject to environmental regulations, including those that govern the handling and release of ethanol, crude oil and other liquid hydrocarbon materials. Compliance with existing and anticipated environmental laws and regulations may increase our overall cost of doing business, including capital costs to construct, maintain, operate and upgrade equipment and facilities. Our business may also be impacted by domestic and foreign government policies, such as clean fuel programs, tariffs, duties, subsidies, import and export restrictions and outright embargos.

On June 13, 2025, the FERC issued an order approving a Stipulation and Consent Agreement ("Consent Agreement") between the Office of Enforcement (“OE”) and the company. The Consent Agreement resolved the OE’s investigation into trading activity conducted by the company which occurred during 2023. As part of the Consent Agreement, the company agreed to pay a civil penalty of $0.9 million, pay $23 thousand in restitution and interest, implement enhancements to its compliance program and be subject to certain trading restrictions.

Human Capital Resources

Attracting, retaining and developing talented employees is essential to our success. We accomplish this, in part, by our competitive compensation practices, training initiatives, and growth opportunities within the company. On December 31, 2025, we had 642 full-time, part-time, temporary and seasonal employees, including 71 employees at our corporate office in Omaha, Nebraska.

Workforce Health and Safety

We prioritize workplace safety through a comprehensive safety program that continuously assesses and enhances our protocols to maintain a safe and secure environment for our employees.

Compensation and Benefits

As part of our compensation philosophy, we believe that we must offer and maintain market competitive compensation and benefit programs for our employees in order to attract and retain superior talent. In addition to competitive base wages, additional programs include the 2019 Equity Incentive Plan, a company-matched 401(k) Plan, healthcare and insurance benefits, flexible spending accounts, paid time off, bonding leave, and employee assistance programs.

Available Information

Our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and amendments to those reports are available on our website at www.gpreinc.com shortly after we file or furnish the information with the SEC. You can also find the charters of our audit, compensation and nominating committees, as well as our code of ethics in the corporate governance section of our website. The information found on our website is not part of this or any other report we file with or furnish to the SEC. Alternatively, investors may visit the SEC website at www.sec.gov to access our reports, proxy and information statements filed with the SEC.