Domestic corn ethanol to pressure Brazil’s US biofuels

According to AgriCensus, investments in new corn ethanol production capacity in Brazil’s Mato Grosso are underway.  

President of Brazil’s corn ethanol producers’ association Unem, Ricardo Tomczyk has projected that new corn ethanol production will lead to surplus biofuel flowing into the country’s north and northeast regions, putting current US ethanol imports under pressure.

Tomczyk stated, “The market isn’t there yet because there hasn’t been any supply but now that it is available, it will move in this direction.”

 AgriCensus reports that Unem has created plans with corn ethanol producers and logistics companies that have made three stages for developing export logistic solutions for biofuel that is produced in the region.

The first phase will see companies in the sector develop railway and river barge networks that will ship the state’s excess biofuel to markets in Brazil’s northern region and the Amazon Basin, says Tomczyk.  

The second phase consists of corn ethanol being sent by barge to Belem at the mouth of the Amazon and later transported by the domestic shipping industry along the north eastern costal states. Tomczyk said, “There’s already a lot of diesel that comes from the northeast to the centre west, so we will take advantages of that back-haul opportunity.”

For the third phase of logistic build-out for corn ethanol exports from Mato Grosso, Unem says that it expects the biofuel to move south on railways and designated pipelines. It will then reach consumer markets and refineries around Brazil’s main urban centres such as Rio de Janerio and Sao Paulo.