Copersucar to supply Brazil ethanol to Japan

Tag : Ethyl Ether

LOS ANGELES, July 3 -- Brazilian ethanol producer Copersucar, eyeing increased exportpotential and growing competition, has signed an agreement tosupply 200 million l./year of ethanol exports to Japan BiofuelsSupply LLP (JBSL).
Copersucar's ethanol will be turned into ethyl tertiary butyl etherand will serve as a fuel additive in Japan, which allows fuelretailers to mix a 3% ethanol blend in nationally sold gasoline.
JBSL, which began marketing biogasoline in April 2007, is comprisedof Idemitsu Kosan Co., Tonen General Sekiyu KK, Taiyo Oil Co., FujiOil Co., Cosmo Oil Co., Kyokuto Petroleum Industries Ltd., KyushuOil Co., Showa Shell Sekiyu KK, Nippon Oil Corp., and Japan EnergyCorp.
JBSL plans to import 360,000 kl. of bioethanol from fiscal 2010. IfJapan expands its blending of ethanol or ethyl tertiary butyl etherin its national gasoline as is expected in the coming years,Brazilian ethanol exports, which reached nearly 3.1 billion l. fromthe 2007-08 season, could nearly double.
Copersucar, one of the top sugar and ethanol groups in Brazil alongwith Cosan Industria e Comercio and Crystalsev, has increased itscane crushing capacity to 70 million tonnes this season, up from 65million tonnes in 2007-08.
The group, which controls 33 cane mills, expects to produce 3.9million tonnes of sugar—up 10% from last season—and 3.7billion l. of ethanol, up 14% on the year.
Pipeline project
Earlier this month Cosan Industria e Comercio, along withCopersucar and Crystalsev, began building an ethanol pipelinelinking the sugarcane milling area of Ribeirao Preto to the Santosport terminal.
A total of 1.6 billion reais is going to be invested in theproject, which will become operational within 4 years, according toCosan director Paulo Diniz.
Meanwhile, according to a Copersucar executive, Brazilian ethanolexports from the south-central region could rise this season by atleast 50% over last year's crop as US demand for the biofuelsurges.
"Total exports could reach 4.5-5 billion l.…due mainly to theincrease in US ethanol prices," said Soren Jensen, internationaltrading manager at Copersucar. "Exports this season will rise by atleast 50%, possibly 60% or 70%," he said during an agribusinessseminar in Sao Paulo.
Brazil is the world's largest ethanol exporter, and the UScurrently is its main customer. However, Brazil's PetroleoBrasileiro SA (Petrobras) is expanding into the Japanese market andlikely sees an opportunity to expand its sales of ethanol made fromsugarcane.
The Brazilian firm brought the Okinawa-based Nansei Sekiyu KK, asupplier of fuel oil to Tepco, under its umbrella in April andplans to start selling gasoline blended with bioethanol in Japanwithin the year (OGJ, Apr. 7, 2008, Newsletter).
Contact Eric Watkins at hippalus@yahoo.com.