From Big Oil to Big Ethanol?

MDL reports that Lake County's locally owned ethanol plant, Dakota Ethanol, has signed a "non-binding letter of intent" to merge with Countryside Renewable Energy, Inc., a new Iowa company looking to consolidate ethanol plants into one big company. Dakota Ethanol general manager Scott Mundt (not to be confused with KELO-TV meteorologist and Jay-Trobec wingman Scot Mundt) thinks the merger will be great. The South Dakota Corn Growers think it'll be great.

I'm suspcious. Am I the only person who isn't convinced that bigger is better? Doesn't merging mean that some portion of the money that Dakota Ethanol generates will leave the state for Iowa? I'll be interested to hear what the local investors think of the prospect of this merger. How important is independent ownership to them?