Brazil Could Produce 8B Liters of Biofuel from Bagasse by 2020

Report: Brazil Could Produce 8B Liters of Biofuel from Bagasse by 2020
1 June 2009
A new report from Novozymes describes how Brazil could produce up to 8 billion liters (2.1 billion gallons US) of biofuel from sugarcane residues (bagasse) by 2020, representing additional export revenue for Brazil of up to US$4 billion.

According to the report, within two to three years Brazil could start large-scale production of biofuel made from sugarcane residues, in addition to the existing production from sugar itself. By 2020, Brazil could produce 4.6-8.2 billion liters of biofuel from bagasse.

Novozymes is presenting the report at the Ethanol Summit in São Paulo, 1-3 June.

Last year, the EU doubled its import of biofuel, with the majority of supplies coming from Brazil. The export market for biofuels is growing rapidly due to political commitments in the US and the European Union to create a cleaner transportation sector, backed by legislation that creates global demand and gives Brazil a unique position in the market.

US and EU legislation favors biofuels made from residues instead of food stocks. Novozymes and its Brazilian partner CTC are investing heavily in developing biofuels from residues, and in March this year they received a €1.6 million (US$2.3 million) grant from the European Union in support of this important work. The EU contract is aimed at achieving lower costs in the conversion of biomass into ethanol.

In Brazil, the proportion of bioethanol used in transport fuel is already at 50%; by comparison, the proportion is 7% in the US, 2% in China, and 1% in Europe, according to Novozymes.