Brazil, who usually goes for ethanol production from sugarcane juice, is now aiming to produce ethanol from corn.
Sao Martinho SA, one of the country’s largest sugar and ethanol producers, plans to build a facility to produce ethanol from corn in the state of Goias.
In the last five years, Brazil witnessed hike in corn planting, as farmers opted for soybeans in the summer and corn in the winter.
According to reports, the company expects to invest 350 million reais ($90.94 million) in the project and it did not disclose an expected timeline for the plant’s construction.
Following the low market prices of sugar, Brazil sugar mills are likely to focus on ethanol production like last year. The excess production of sugar kept the prices low, and the mills turned back to their favourite ethanol production as the gasoline prices have increased. This strategy of switchover makes Brazilian mills key swing factor in sugar markets. Last year global sugar production was reduced as the world’s largest producer cut output by almost 10 million tonnes.
