CONSENT
      OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
    
    The
      Board
      of Directors
    Pacific
      Ethanol, Inc.
    
    We
      consent to the incorporation by reference in this Registration Statement on
      Form
      S-3 of Pacific Ethanol, Inc. of our reports dated March 7, 2007 relating to
      our
      audits of the consolidated financial statements and internal control over
      financial reporting, which appear in the Annual Report on Form 10-K of Pacific
      Ethanol, Inc. for the year ended December 31, 2006.
    
    Our
      report dated March 7, 2007, on management’s assessment of the effectiveness of
      internal control over financial reporting and the effectiveness of internal
      control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2006, expressed an opinion
      that Pacific Ethanol, Inc. had not maintained effective internal control over
      financial reporting as of December 31, 2006, based on criteria established
      in
      Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring
      Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO).
    
    We
      also
      consent to the reference to our firm under the caption “Experts” in the
      Prospectus, which is part of this Registration Statement.
    
    /s/
      HEIN
& ASSOCIATES LLP
     
    Irvine,
      California