Etanol.nu

Thailand should aim to position itself as a global ethanol production hub, said Prasert Bunsumpun, the president and chief executive of the majority state-owned energy giant PTT Plc. The country should leverage its strong agricultural base to become a global leader in biofuels, he said at an Asean energy ministers' meeting yesterday in Bangkok.

''[Thailand] has an advantage over everyone else, as we have plentiful raw materials such as molasses and cassava. We can make a large amount of ethanol cheaply,'' Mr Prasert said.

Fuel blends of 10% and 20% ethanol are already widely used locally, and policymakers hope to introduce E85 fuel with 85% ethanol by the end of the year.

Statistics now show petrol consumption decreasing as motorists switch to alternatives, making ethanol production even more important.

Mr Prasert said the use of ethanol-petrol blends could eventually follow the example of Brazil, a global leader in the use of ethanol for transport.

A total of 45 ethanol producers have registered with authorities for a combined production capacity of 12 million litres per day.

But only 11 factories are in production with daily output of 1.57 million litres. Output by the end of the year is projected to rise by another 2.5 million litres per day as eight new plants start production.

Authorities expect that demand for ethanol-based fuels will rise even further starting this month after the government agreed to cut excise taxes. Prices for gasohol are now nearly 10 baht per litre cheaper than premium petrol.

Meanwhile, overall fuel demand continues to decline as high prices have led to greater fuel conservation by motorists.

$300 million plant for Philippines could be biggest in Asia
22 January 2010

The Philippines could soon be home to the largest bioethanol facility in Asia.

A South Korean-based company is investing $300 million (€212.6 million) to construct a bioethanol plant in Clark, Philippines, by 2012.

Speaking about the plant, Mariz Agbon, president of the Philippine Agribusiness Development and Commercial Corp (PADCC) said, ‘It is effectively the biggest in the country and possibly in Asia. It will be comparable to the ones in Brazil.’

This colossal bioethanol refinery, which will use sugarcane as its feedstock, has the capacity to produce 150 million litres a year. It will also be able to generate its own supply of power – 40 MW of this can be supplied to other consumers.

At this stage in the development, agriculture officials have not named the Korean company behind the project, claiming they wish to maintain a low profile.