Pacific Ethanol Announces Appointment of Joseph Hansen as Chief Financial Officer

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Dec. 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pacific Ethanol, Inc. (Nasdaq: PEIX), the largest West Coast-based marketer and producer of ethanol, today announced the appointment of Joseph Hansen as Chief Financial Officer, effective January 2, 2008.

Mr. Hansen, age 59, has over 20 years of financial and accounting experience with both public and private companies. Formerly, Mr. Hansen served as Chief Financial Officer of JosephScott Properties, Inc., National RV Holdings Inc., and Zacky Farms Co. His financial and risk management expertise includes experience in grain and commodity markets and transportation related businesses. Mr. Hansen is a CPA and an attorney. He holds a J.D. from Tulane University School of Law, an L.L.M.-Taxation from the NYU Graduate School of Law, and a BBA in Accounting from the University of Wisconsin - Madison.

CEO Neil Koehler noted that, "Pacific Ethanol is delighted to announce the appointment of Joe Hansen. He's a seasoned professional with the ideal mix of financial reporting, strategic planning and risk management experience -- particularly in commodities -- that are crucial areas of expertise as we continue to implement our strategic growth plans."

About Pacific Ethanol, Inc.

Pacific Ethanol is the largest West Coast-based marketer and producer of ethanol. Pacific Ethanol has ethanol plants in Madera, California, and in Boardman, Oregon, and has two additional plants under construction in Burley, Idaho, and in Stockton, California. Pacific Ethanol also owns a 42% interest in Front Range Energy, LLC which owns an ethanol plant in Windsor, Colorado. Central to Pacific Ethanol's growth strategy is its destination business model, whereby each respective ethanol plant achieves lower process and transportation costs by servicing local markets for both fuel and feed. Pacific Ethanol's goal is to achieve 220 million gallons per year of ethanol production capacity in 2008 and to increase total production capacity to 420 million gallons per year in 2010. In addition, Pacific Ethanol is working to identify and develop other renewable fuel technologies, such as cellulose- based ethanol production and bio-diesel.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995

With the exception of historical information, the matters discussed in this press release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. The actual future results of Pacific Ethanol could differ from those statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, the ability of Pacific Ethanol to successfully and timely complete, in a cost-effective manner, construction of its ethanol plants under construction; the ability of Pacific Ethanol to obtain all necessary financing to complete the construction of its other planned ethanol production facilities; the ability of Pacific Ethanol to timely complete its ethanol plant build-out program and to successfully capitalize on its internal growth initiatives; the ability of Pacific Ethanol to operate its plants at their planned production capacities; the price of ethanol relative to the price of gasoline; the effect of federal and state governmental regulations on the demand for ethanol; and the factors contained in the "Risk Factors" section of Pacific Ethanol's Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 12, 2007.

SOURCE Pacific Ethanol, Inc.

Released December 17, 2007