Document:

exv4w3

 

EXHIBIT 4.3

ESCROW AGREEMENT

     THIS ESCROW AGREEMENT (this “Agreement”) is made this 11th day of October, 2006, by
and between Homeland Energy Solutions, LLC an Iowa limited liability company (“Homeland Energy”)
and Home Federal Savings Bank as escrow agent (the “Escrow Agent”).

W I T N E S S E T H:

     WHEREAS, Homeland Energy proposes to offer a minimum of 55,000 and a maximum of 100,000 of its
Membership Units (the “Units”) at a price of $1,000 per Unit, in minimum blocks of twenty-five (25)
Units in an offering registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and in the states of
Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and possibly offered
in other states pursuant to state securities registration exemptions and under the provisions of
the Securities Act of 1933, as amended;

     WHEREAS, Homeland Energy will file a registration statement to register the Units with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, the States of Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota,
Missouri, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and possibly other states;

     WHEREAS, Homeland Energy will allow investors in the Offering to deliver the purchase price of
the subscribed Units in installments; and

     WHEREAS, Homeland Energy desires to comply with the requirements of federal and state
securities laws and regulations, and desires to protect the investors in the Offering by providing,
under the terms and conditions herein set forth, for the return to subscribers of the money which
they may pay on account of purchases of Units in the Offering if the Minimum Escrow Deposit
(hereinafter defined) is not deposited with the Escrow Agent.

     NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants herein contained and for other good
and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which is acknowledged, the parties agree
as follows:

     1. Acceptance of Appointment. Home Federal Savings Bank hereby agrees to act as
Escrow Agent under this Agreement. The Escrow Agent shall have no duty to enforce any provision
hereof requiring performance by any other party hereunder.

     2. Establishment of Escrow Account. An escrow account (the “Escrow Account”) is
hereby established with the Escrow Agent for the benefit of the investors in the Offering. Except
as specifically provided in this Agreement, the Escrow Account shall be created and maintained
subject to the customary rules and regulations of the Escrow Agent pertaining to such accounts.

     3. Ownership of Escrow Account. Until such time as the funds deposited in the Escrow
Account (the “Deposited Funds”) shall equal the Minimum Escrow Deposit (as hereinafter defined),
all funds deposited in the Escrow Account by Homeland Energy shall not become the property of

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Homeland Energy or be subject to the debts of Homeland Energy or any other person but shall be held
by the Escrow Agent solely for the benefit of the investors who have purchased Units in the
Offering.

     4. Deposit of Proceeds. All proceeds from sales of Units in the Offering shall be
delivered by Homeland Energy to the Escrow Agent, within forty-eight hours of the receipt thereof
from investors, endorsed (if appropriate) to the order of the Escrow Agent, together with an
appropriate written statement setting forth name, address and social security number of each person
purchasing Units, the number of Units purchased, and the amount paid by each such purchaser. Any
such proceeds deposited with the Escrow Agent in the form of uncollected checks shall be promptly
presented by the Escrow Agent for collection through customary banking and clearing house
facilities. As the proceeds of each sale are deposited with the Escrow Agent, Homeland Energy
shall reserve the number of Units confirmed to the purchaser thereof in connection with such sale.
All such deposited proceeds are referred to herein as the “Escrow Funds”.

     5. Investment of Escrow Account. The Escrow Funds shall be credited by the Escrow
Agent and recorded in the Escrow Account. The Escrow Agent shall be permitted, and is hereby
authorized to deposit, transfer, hold and invest all funds received under this Agreement, including
principal and interest, in those investments directed, in writing by Homeland Energy. The Escrow
Agent is hereby authorized to invest Escrow Funds in a Home Federal Savings Bank Deposit Account
that is collateralized by United States Government Agency Securities for temporary investment
without written direction. Any interest received by the Escrow Agent on this Deposit Account shall
be paid to Homeland Energy, or the investors, as indicated elsewhere in this Agreement.

     6. Termination of Escrow. This Agreement and the Escrow created hereunder shall
be terminated as provided in paragraph 7 hereof or as of the date in calendar year 2007 (the
“Termination Date”), which is one year and one day following the date in calendar year 2006 upon
which the Securities and Exchange Commission authorizes the Offering (the “Offering’s Effective
Date”). The Company shall notify Escrow Agent of the Offering’s Effective Date within thirty (30)
days of the receipt of notice of the Offering’s Effective Date from the Securities and Exchange
Commission.

     7. Disposition of Escrow Funds. The Escrow Agent shall have the following duties and
obligations under this Agreement:

     A. The Escrow Agent shall send a written notice acknowledging the receipt of the
Deposited Funds every seven days to the Company.

     B. The Escrow Agent shall give the Company prompt written notice when the Deposited
Funds equal $5,500,000 (exclusive of interest). Following receipt of such notice, the
Company will advise the purchasers of Units to remit to the Escrow Agent the balance of the
purchase price within twenty (20) days. Thereafter, Escrow Agent shall give the Company
written notice acknowledging the receipt of the Deposited Funds every seven days. The
Escrow Agent shall give the Company prompt written notice when the Deposited Funds total
$55,000,000 (exclusive of interest).

     C. At the time (and in the event) that: (a) the Deposited Funds shall, during the

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term of this Agreement, equal $55,000,000 in subscription proceeds (exclusive of
interest) (the “Minimum Escrow Deposit”); (b) the Escrow Agent shall have received written
confirmation from the Company that the Company has obtained a written debt financing
commitment for debt financing ranging from a minimum of $47,675,000 to a maximum of
$102,675,000; (c) the Company has affirmatively elected in writing to terminate this
Agreement; (d) the Escrow Agent shall have provided to each state securities department in
which the Company has registered its securities for sale, as communicated to the Escrow
Agent by the Company, an affidavit stating that the foregoing requirements (a), (b) and (c)
of this subsection 7C have been satisfied; and (d) in each state in which consent is
required, the state securities commissioners have consented to release of the funds on
deposit, then this Agreement shall terminate, and the Escrow Agent shall promptly disburse
the funds on deposit, including interest, to the Company to be used in accordance with the
provisions set out in the Registration Statement. Notwithstanding any other provision of
this Agreement, under no circumstances shall the South Dakota Division of Securities be
required or requested by the Company or the Escrow Agent to (i) consent to the disbursement
of Deposited Funds; or (ii) recognize the Company’s fulfillment of its obligations pursuant
to the terms of this Agreement. The Company will deliver a copy of the Registration
Statement to the Escrow Agent upon execution of this Agreement. The Escrow Agent will have
no responsibility to examine the Registration Statement with regard to the Escrow Account or
otherwise and the Registration Statement shall contain a provision to such effect. Upon the
making of such disbursement, the Escrow Agent shall be completely discharged and released of
any and all further responsibilities hereunder.

     D. In the event the Deposited Funds do not equal or exceed the Minimum Escrow Deposit
on or before the Termination Date or if the Company has not received a written debt
financing commitment as described herein on or before the Termination Date, the Escrow Agent
shall return to each of the purchasers of the Units in the Offering, as promptly as possible
after such Termination Date and on the basis of its records pertaining to the Escrow
Account: (a) the sum which each purchaser initially paid in on account of purchases of the
Units in the Offering and (b) each purchaser’s portion of the total interest earned on the
Escrow Account as of the Termination Date, (c) reduced by the transaction fees provided in
paragraph 10 hereof. Computation of any purchaser’s share of the net interest earned will
be a weighted average based on the proportion of such purchaser’s deposit in the Escrow
Account from the Offering to all such purchasers’ deposits held by the Escrow Agent and upon
the length of time in days such deposit was held in the Escrow Account as compared to all
such deposits. All computations with respect to each purchaser’s allocable share of net
interest shall be made by the Escrow Agent, which determinations shall be final and
conclusive. Any amount paid or payable to a purchaser pursuant to this paragraph shall be
deemed to be the property of such purchaser, free and clear of any and all claims of the
Company or its agents or creditors; and the respective purchases of the Units made and
entered into in the Offering shall thereupon be deemed, ipso facto, to be cancelled without
any further liability of the purchasers or any of them to pay for the Units purchased. At
such time as the Escrow Agent shall have made all the payments called for in this paragraph,
the Escrow Agent shall be completely discharged and released of any and all further
responsibilities hereunder, and the Units reserved (as provided in paragraph 5) shall be
released from such reservation, except that Escrow Agent shall be required to prepare and
issue a single IRS Form 1099 to each investor in the event that funds are returned to
investors.

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     8. Agreement with Escrow Agent. To induce Escrow Agent to act hereunder, it is agreed
by Homeland Energy that:

     A. The sole duty of the Escrow Agent, other than as herein specified, shall be to
receive the Escrow Funds and hold them subject to release, in accordance herewith, and the
Escrow Agent shall be under no duty to determine whether Homeland Energy is complying with
the requirements of this Agreement in tendering to the Escrow Agent said proceeds of the
sale of said Units. The Escrow Agent may conclusively rely upon and shall be protected in
acting upon any statement, certificate, notice, request, consent, order or other document
believed by it to be genuine and to have been signed or presented by the proper party or
parties. The Escrow Agent shall have no duty or liability to verify any such statement,
certificate, notice, request, consent, order or other document, and its sole responsibility
shall be to act only as expressly set forth in this Agreement. The Escrow Agent shall be
under no obligation to institute or defend any action, suit or proceeding in connection with
this Agreement unless first indemnified to its satisfaction. The Escrow Agent may consult
counsel in respect of any question arising under this Agreement and the Escrow Agent shall
not be liable for any action taken or omitted in good faith upon advice of such counsel.

     B. Homeland Energy hereby indemnifies and holds harmless the Escrow Agent from and
against any and all loss, liability, cost, damage and expense, including, without
limitation, reasonable counsel fees, which the Escrow Agent may suffer or incur by reason of
any action, claim or proceeding brought against the Escrow Agent arising out of or relating
in any way to this Agreement or any transaction to which this Agreement relates unless such
action, claim or proceeding is the result of the gross negligence or willful misconduct of
the Escrow Agent.

     9. Resignation and Removal of Escrow Agent Successors. The Escrow Agent may resign
upon thirty (30) days advance written notice to Homeland Energy. If a successor Escrow Agent is
not appointed within the 30-day period following such notice, Escrow Agent may petition any court
of competent jurisdiction to name a successor Escrow Agent. Any commercial banking institution or
trust company with which Escrow Agent may merge or consolidate, and any commercial banking
institution or trust company to which Escrow Agent transfers all or substantially all of its
corporate trust business shall be the successor Escrow Agent without further act.

     10. Fees and Expenses of Escrow Agent. Homeland Energy agrees to pay the Escrow Agent
the fees specified in the Escrow Agent’s fee schedule attached hereto as Exhibit A, in the manner
set forth therein, unless otherwise agreed to by the parties in writing. The parties further agree
that such fees shall be paid from interest on the escrow account only and not from principal. In
the event the interest on the escrow account is insufficient to satisfy the full amount of fees
payable hereunder, Homeland Energy shall be solely responsible for the payment of such fees and the
Escrow Agent shall not seek payment of the fees from investors or apply any principal deposited by
investors in the escrow account against such fees. The fee agreed upon herein is intended as full
consideration for the Escrow Agent’s services as contemplated by this Agreement; provided,
however, that in the event the Escrow Agent renders any material service not contemplated
in this Agreement or there is any assignment of interest in the subject matter of this Agreement,
or any material modification hereof;

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or if any material controversy arises hereunder, or the Escrow Agent is made a party to any
litigation pertaining to this Agreement, or the subject matter hereof, then the Escrow Agent shall
be reasonably compensated for such extraordinary services and reimbursed for all costs and
expenses, including reasonable attorney’s fees, occasioned by any delay, controversy, litigation or
event, and the same shall be recoverable from Homeland Energy, but not from the escrow account.

     11. Notices. All notices, requests, demands, and other communications under this
Agreement shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given (a) on the date of
service if served personally on the party to whom notice is to be given, (b) on the day of
transmission if sent by facsimile transmission to the facsimile number given below, and telephonic
confirmation of receipt is obtained promptly after completion of transmission, (c) on the next day
on which such deliveries are made in New Hampton, Iowa, when delivery is to Federal Express or
similar overnight courier or the Express Mail service maintained by the United States Postal
Service, or (d) on the fifth day after mailing, if mailed to the party to whom notice is to be
given, by first class mail, registered or certified, postage prepaid, and properly addressed,
return receipt requested, to the party as follows:

If to Escrow Agent:

Home Federal Savings Bank

1016 Civic Center Drive NW

Rochester, Minnesota 55901

Attn: Jon Eberle, SVP/CFO

Fax: (507) 535-1301

Phone: (507)-535-1210

If to Homeland Energy:

Homeland Energy Solutions, LLC

951 North Linn Avenue

New Hampton, Iowa 50659

Attn: Stephen Eastman, President

Fax: (641) 985-4000

Phone: (641) 985-2147

with a required copy to:

Brown, Winick, Graves, Gross, Baskerville and Schoenebaum, P.L.C.

666 Grand Avenue, Suite 2000

Des Moines, IA 50309

Attention: Valerie D. Bandstra

Fax: (515) 323-8559

Phone: (515)-242-2400

     12. Governing Law. This Agreement shall be construed, performed, and enforced in
accordance with, and governed by, the internal laws of the State of Iowa, without giving effect to
the principles of conflict of laws thereof.

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     13. Successors and Assigns. Except as otherwise provided in this Agreement, no party
hereto shall assign this Agreement or any rights or obligations hereunder without the prior written
consent to the other parties hereto and any such attempted assignment without such prior written
consent shall be void and of no force and effect. This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and
shall be binding upon the successors and permitted assigns of the parties hereto.

     14. Severability. In the event that any part of this Agreement is declared by any
court or other judicial or administrative body to be null, void, or unenforceable, said provision
shall survive to the extent it is not so declared, and all of the other provisions of this
Agreement shall remain in full force and effect.

     15. Further Assurances. Each of the parties shall execute such documents and other
papers and take such further actions, as may be reasonably required or desirable to carry out the
provisions hereof and the transactions contemplated hereby.

     16. Amendments. This Agreement may be amended or modified, and any of the terms,
covenants, representations, warranties, or conditions hereof may be waived, only by a written
instrument executed by the parties hereto, or in the case of a waiver, by the party waiving
compliance. Any waiver by any party of any condition, or of the breach of any provision, term,
covenant, representation, or warranty contained in the Agreement, in any one or more instances,
shall not be deemed to be nor construed as further or continuing waiver of any such conditions, or
of the breach of any other provision, term, covenant, representation, or warranty of this
Agreement.

     17. Entire Agreement. This Agreement contains the entire understanding among the
parties hereto with respect to the escrow contemplated hereby and supersedes and replaces all prior
and contemporaneous agreements and understandings, oral or written, with regard to such escrow.

     18. Section Headings. The section headings in this Agreement are for reference
purposes only and shall not affect the meaning or interpretation of this Agreement.

     19. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in two or more counterparts, each of
which shall be deemed an original but all of which together shall constitute one and the same
instrument.

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have hereunto affixed their signatures as of the day
and year first written above.

	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 
	HOMELAND ENERGY:	 	 	 	ESCROW AGENT	 	 
	 
	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 
	HOMELAND ENERGY SOLUTIONS, LLC	 	 	 	HOME FEDERAL SAVINGS BANK	 	 
	 
	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 
	By:

	 	/s/ Stephen Eastman
	 	 	 	By:
	 	/s/ Jon Eberle	 	 
	 

	 	 
	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 
	Stephen Eastman, President	 	 	 	Printed Name: Jon Eberle	 	 
	 	 	 	 	 	 	Title: SVP/CFO	 	 

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Exhibit A

 

Escrow Agent Fee Schedule

Escrow Agreement

Homeland Energy Solutions, LLC

	 	 	 	 	 
	Administration
	 	$	0.00	 
	 
	 	 	 
	 
	 	 	 	 
	Transaction Fees
	 	 	 	 
	Subscriber
	 	$	0.00	 
	 
	 	 	 
	Disbursement/Each
	 	$	25.00	 
	 
	 	 	 
	 
	 	 	 	 
	1099 Filing
	 	$	0.00	 
	 
	 	 	 
	Subscriber/Filing
	 	$	25.00	 
	 
	 	 	 

All out of pocket costs and expenses, including postage, supplies, long distance telephone charges,
wires and reasonable attorney’s fees will be in addition hereto.

We reserve the right to revise fees, including establishing new minimums, as necessitated by
changing economic conditions.

All fees are charged in arrears and are quoted on an annualized basis; however we reserve the right
to bill in advance, or on a more frequent basis.

7exv10w11

 

EXHIBIT 10.11

Letter of Engagement

for

Natural Gas Services – Hometown Homeland Energy Solutions

	 	 	 	 	 	 	 
	Steve Dietz

	 	 	 	 	 	May 15, 2006
	Board of Directors
	 	 	 	 	 	 
	Hometown Energy	 	Homeland Energy Solutions	 	 
	1822 43rd St SW

	 	951 N Lin
	 	PO Box 435	 	 
	Mason City, IA 50401

	 	New Hampton IA	 	 	 	 

The purpose of this Letter of Engagement (LOE) is to document preliminary
understandings and set forth expectations between Hometown Homeland Energy Solutions and
Cornerstone Energy, Inc. (Cornerstone) regarding the natural gas supply for Hometown Energy’s
proposed ethanol plant near New Hampton, Iowa. While it is recognized that this LOE is
a non-binding expression of interest, Cornerstone agrees to work in good faith to
accommodate Hometown Energy’s fuel needs and expectations.

Scope of Services

Cornerstone is a full service natural gas supplier capable of providing 100% of
Hometown Energy’s fuel requirements from wellhead to burner-tip, specifically
including the construction of facilities. Cornerstone serves several thousand customers in
the Midwest including many similarly situated ethanol plants. It is Cornerstone’s desire
to manage all aspects of Hometown Energy’s fuel needs. The scope of services that are
typically involved with such an endeavor and likely applicable to the proposed New
Hampton facility would include:

	 	1)	 	Preliminary physical data gathering (i.e. plant location, pressure requirements,
volume projections, in-service date, etc.)
	 
	 	2)	 	Determine closes proximity of viable and optimum transmission source.
	 
	 	3)	 	Calculate cost of fuel line connecting the plant to the transmission source.
	 
	 	4)	 	Analyze and/or negotiate fuel line alternatives.
	 
	 	5)	 	Obtain and negotiate pipeline “tap” cost/fee.
	 
	 	6)	 	Provide Hometown a proposal for the construction of the fuel line and all
associated natural gas facilities (“turn-key” facilities).
	 
	 	7)	 	Construct “turn-key” natural gas facilities in compliance with title 49 of the
Code of Federal Regulations, subpart 192.
	 
	 	8)	 	Arrange for operations and maintenance (O&M) of the facilities.
	 
	 	9)	 	Provide and/or negotiate for interstate pipeline transportation.
	 
	 	10)	 	Provide and/or negotiate for natural gas commodity.
	 
	 	11)	 	Provide Hometown a comprehensive risk management plan targeted at
mitigating natural gas price volatility and maintaining profitability.
	 
	 	12)	 	Provide consultation and assist as needed in negotiating electricity
agreements.

 

 

Supply and Pipeline Alternatives

     As we discussed at our meeting on Wednesday May 10, below are likely supply
alternatives and pricing scenarios available based on today’s market conditions.

Northern Natural Gas Tap and Distribution: The existing tap in New Hampton, IA does
not have the availability capacity to meet supply requirements of a 100 million gallon
ethanol facility. Therefore, discussions should proceed with NNG to determine what the
constraints are and also what the impact of NNG’s Northern Lights expansion project
may have on flexibility and commitments for Hometown Energy. Alternatives would be
identified for NNG to provide transportation to the facility.

NNG Supply Pricing:

	 	•	 	Supply Cost: Ventura Index plus $.0483 per MMBtu.
	 
	 	•	 	Balancing and Nominations: Cornerstone will charge $.025 for a full service
nomination and balancing program.

	 	o	 	Cornerstone provides all nomination and scheduling requirements.
	 
	 	o	 	Customer will not incur daily balancing charges or punitive monthly cash
out costs.
	 
	 	o	 	Monthly cash out based on daily gas cost reconciled to customer’s daily,
gas consumption.

Total cost delivered to Hometown Energy will include NNG charges for fuel and
commodity transportation costs. In addition, Hometown will likely be required to enter
into long term capacity contracts at a 100% load factor rate of approximately $.25 per
MMbtu, based upon NNG published tariff rates.

Assuming an average Ventura supply cost of $8.00 per MMbtu, the likely delivered cost
of gas will equal $8.4806. ($8.00 plus 1.37% for fuel, .04474 commodity, .25 capacity,
$.0483 index premium, $.025 balancing program.)

Cornerstone does not charge a monthly management fee or additional charges for time
and travel. As your supplier and provider of service we feel Cornerstone is obligated to
provide these services at no additional charge.

Alliance Tap and Distribution: Recent discussions with key Cornerstone supply
partners indicate a strong willingness to provide supply off of the Alliance pipeline
absent of long term capacity commitments. In addition, our supply partners have
significant available capacity to meet the total supply needs of Hometown Energy. This
alternative may likely prove to be a better alternative given Hometown’s desire to
ultimately develop coal based boiler technology. Preliminary indications are that we can
set up a more flexible approach here that ultimately would reduce long-term
transportation costs for Hometown.

 

 

Alliance pricing will likely be tied to the Chicago City Gate Index without the NNG
adders for fuel, capacity and commodity charges. This is a very viable alternative that
should be pursued concurrently with the NNG alternative.

Next Step

Subject to the acceptance of this LOE, Cornerstone will proceed working on items 1
through 6 listed above, culminating with an executable proposal to construct the “turn-
key” facilities. Since it is Cornerstone’s intent to provide Hometown a total energy
solution, such proposal will include long-term natural gas supply alternatives and any
other related services desired by the customer. Cornerstone will begin work on these
tasks based on “goodwill”; thus, there will be no associated energy management fee or
cost. Once the proposal is submitted, neither party will have any obligation to proceed
unless and until said proposal is accepted and executed. Any subsequent work will be
pursuant to the specific terms and conditions outlined therein.

Cornerstone is highly appreciative of the opportunity to assist Hometown in its endeavor.
It is our goal to serve as an energy partner to Hometown, rather than just another supplier.
For this reason we have assembled a team of professionals to work on this project, which
includes resources with expertise in pipeline engineering, finance & tax supply,
transportation, and risk management. I will be your primary contact person and project
leader. In addition, Christy Atchison will also be closely involved with this project.
Christy and I bring a combined 32 years of experience in the natural gas industry and
look forward to providing the best natural gas supply solutions specific to your operational
needs.

Once again, thank you for the opportunity to participate in this project. If you have any

questions, please call either Christy Atchison at (712)-255-6084 or myself at (218) 878-0675.

If you are in agreement with the contents of this Letter of Engagement, please signify

your concurrence by signing below.

I Concur and Approve:

	 	 	 	 	 
	Hometown Homeland Energy Solutions	 	Kind Regards,
	 
	 	 	 	 
	By:

	 	/s/ Stephen Eastman
	 	Steven D. Sorenson
	 

	 	 

	 	Director of Ethanol Services
	Title:

	 	President
	 	Cornerstone Energy, Inc.
	 
	 	 	 	 
	Date:

	 	6-7-06

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