Bioethanol industry rejuvenation plan moving in Ireland

A new push for a bioethanol and sugar industry in Ireland recently had its first public fundraising event.

Beet Ireland, a group comprising of farmers and suppliers, launched its first public fundraiser for €6 million ($8.1 million) at the National Ploughing Championships in County Laois at the end of September.

The overall project is seen as the next step on the road to developing a new sugar and bioethanol industry for Ireland. The current target date for processing sugar beet is 2017 following the finalisation of the EU CAP agreement last July by minister Simon Coveney, which has enabled the business planning for the project to continue within a clear timeframe.

Beet Ireland has been working with financial services company Cantor Fitzgerald to plan the financing of this major strategic infrastructural project for Ireland, which is believed to cost around €400 million.

A first tranche of €3 million will be used to finance the pre-development costs for the new sugar and bioethanol production facility, including site investigation and planning, with a view to securing planning permission for the facility.

The redevelopment of the Irish sugar industry is believed to be a major economic stimulus for Ireland. Currently the cost of all sugar imports in to the country is over €300 million a year.