Odebrecht ETH alcohol projects go into operation
Folha de S.Paulo
Two years after announcing it would go into the production of alcohol and sugar and cogeneration of energy, ETH Bioenergia - the arm of Odebrecht in the sugar and energy sector - starts the operations in the three "Greenfield" projects it has developed. Despite the global crisis and the difficulties the sector went through since 2008, the company says that it did not postpone investments in the projects and today it inaugurates the Goiás "Greenfield". Those of São Paulo and Mato Grosso do Sul will start operating within the next weeks.
Together with the production of raw material, the crisis in the sugar and alcohol sector made some producers step on the brake in the planting. With that, the company inaugurates the Goiás "Greenfield', in municipality of Caçu, crushing 90% of its own sugar cane. The purpose of the company is to operate its units with 55% to 60% of its own sugar cane.
ETH already starts strong - its crushing capacity is of 13 million tons of sugar cane a year. The three projects which will be opened have a crushing capacity of 9 million tons - other two units, acquired ready in 2007 and 2008, crush another 4 million tons. In this 2009/10 harvest, it foresees crushing of 7 to 8 million tons of sugarcane and producing 500 million liters of alcohol. The production of sugar may reach 230 thousand tons.
ETH, which has 33% of participation of the Japanese Sojitz Corporation expects to achieve the crushing of 40 million tons until 2015. should this goal be met, the company will achieve, on that date, the production of 3 billion liters of alcohol and 1.2 million tons of sugar, and it will generate 1,300 megawatts of energy a year. The total crushing of the sector this harvest should be 550 million tons in the Mid-South with the production of 25.3 billion liters of alcohol and 30 million tons of sugar.