Greenergy Brazil JV to Source and Sell Brazilian Sugarcane Bioethanol
05 February 2010
Greenergy International Ltd, one of the largest fuel suppliers in the UK, has entered into a joint venture with Bauche Group (30%), a leading expert in the sugarcane industry, to source and sell Brazilian bioethanol. The new business, Greenergy Brazil headquartered in Sao Paulo, has been established to meet increasing demand for UK RTFO and EU Renewable Energy Directive compliant bioethanol.
Greenergy supplies a number of UK fuel companies and forecourt operators with Brazilian bioethanol and has established an extensive gold standard sustainability audit program for producers in Brazil. The joint venture will help secure future supplies of sustainable product, reduce the overall cost of buying bioethanol and secure Greenergy’s role as the leading inland supplier to the UK and Europe.
In 2010 traded volumes are expected to exceed 600,000 m3, of which approximately 50% will be supplied by Greenergy into the UK market. These levels are expected to more than double over the next 3 years as obligated biofuel inclusion levels increase across Europe.
Bauche Group has an established presence in Brazil with extensive trading relationships with local mills and has been working with Greenergy to establish best practice suppliers of sustainably sourced and traceable bioethanol for movement into the UK and Europe for a number of years.
Under the new RFS2 rules released by the US Environmental Protection Agency (earlier post), sugarcane ethanol qualifies as an advanced biofuel in terms of its greenhouse gas profile.
I favor using the ethanol closer to the site of production and the production closer to the site of growing. Sugarcane, Energy Cane, Switch grass, corn stover, rice straw, wheat straw and forest product waste are all good feedstock candidates.
Posted by: SJC | 05 February 2010 at 03:32 PM