Ethanol exports to grow 73%

Sep 05 2008

Brazil should export 6.1 billion litres of ethanol in 2011. The forecast is included in research "Ethanol as a new universal fuel", disclosed yesterday (04) by the National Food Supply Company (Conab). He said that there should be growth of 72.85% over exports in 2007.
Last year, Brazil exported 3.53 billion litres of ethanol. Up to the end of this year, there should already be growth of 18.21% in exports, with 4.17 billion litres. The Brazilian consumption should also grow 50.46% by 2011, according to the person responsible for the research, Ângelo Bressan. The national demand should rise from the 16.47 billion litres of last year to 24.78 billion this year.
According to Bressan, after four positive sugarcane crops, the fleet of Brazilian vehicles exclusively powered by petrol dropped from 45% of the total to 8%. This greater demand, both Brazilian and foreign, is also reflected in the country, with a greater sugarcane crop.
A Conab study, disclosed yesterday, shows that the sugar and alcohol industry should crush 558.72 million tonnes of sugarcane this year. The volume is record and 11.4% over the result for last year, when the total processed reached 501.54 million tonnes.
"This growth is registered, mainly, in the expansion of cultivated areas by 35 new mills and by the increase in productivity obtained with good climate conditions," explained the Conab manager, Wagner Rossi. The area on which cane is grown rose from 7.08 million hectares to 8.98 million hectares, expansion basically due to degraded areas.
Of the volume picked, 317.82 million tonnes should go to production of ethanol, which means 17.29% more than in 2007 and should generate 27.08 billion litres of fuel. Production of sugar should consume 240.89 million tonnes of sugar, growth of 4.48%, resulting in 32.78 million tonnes of the product.

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