Biofuels Industry Advances and Arrives in Maranhão

(Brazil Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services (Google Translatin)) Alckmin participates in the laying of the cornerstone of the Inpasa Brasil industrial complex, which is expected to produce 460 million liters of ethanol per year in the city of Balsas (MA) -- The federal government's policy of encouraging the production of biofuels in the country has yielded yet another fruit, this time in Balsas, Maranhão. This Tuesday (10), the cornerstone was laid for the installation of the industrial complex of the company Inpasa Brasil, intended for the production of ethanol, bran, crude oil and electrical energy. With an initial investment of R$1.2 billion, 460 million liters of ethanol will be produced and initially created 2,500 jobs during the construction stage, and another 1,500 after the factory is ready.

This is the fourth event of its kind that the vice-president and minister of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services, Geraldo Alckmin, has participated in in recent months, in different regions of the country, which proves the advancement of the biofuels industry and reinforces the This government's focus on sustainable and innovative neo-industrialization.

In May, the minister inaugurated the Nardini Agroindustrial Ethanol Plant, in Aporé (GO); in June, he participated in the inauguration of the expansion of Grupo Potencial's biodiesel industry plant, in Lapa (PR). The following month, he went to the ceremony to complete the expansion work on the Logum Logística pipeline system, responsible for transporting anhydrous and hydrated ethanol over a 128-kilometer stretch in SP. And, in August, he was at the laying of the cornerstone of an ethanol production plant belonging to the company Be8, in Passo Fundo (RS).

Biofuels are cleaner energy alternatives and contribute to renewing the energy matrix, reducing the emission of greenhouse gases. Furthermore, they are strategic for the Brazilian economy: the country is one of the largest producers and exporters of ethanol in the world.

“Day of celebration, one of the biggest investments in Brazil. A new industry, jobs, strengthening agribusiness throughout this region, adds value, generates higher wages in the industry and promotes development in the region”, stated the vice president during this Tuesday's ceremony.

He recalled that President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has already sent the Fuel of the Future bill to Congress. Among other measures to encourage the production of biofuels, the PL increases the maximum percentage of ethanol mixed with gasoline, which will increase from 27.5% to 30%, contributing to a cleaner and less polluting fuel.

Rafael Ranzolin, president of Inpasa, thanked the federal government for its efforts to encourage the biofuels sector and stated that, thanks to it, entrepreneurs in the segment have the security to invest in the country. “We are already in the biorefinery process, and this makes us very confident about investing in the country.”

He also thanked the state government for tax incentives for the industry to settle there. The governor of Maranhão, Carlos Brandão, said he had spared no effort to achieve this. “I can't miss the opportunity to bring this company that will generate 2,500 jobs initially and 1,500 later”, he celebrated.

Balsas industrial complex — The industrial plant to be built by Inpasa is designed to process one million tons of cereals, resulting in the production of 460 million liters of ethanol, 230 thousand tons of so-called distillers grains (DDGS), 23 thousand tons of Premium OIL and 200 GWH/year of electrical energy.

Inpasa is one of the first corn ethanol industries in Brazil, and the largest producer of clean and renewable corn-based fuel in Latin America, with two units in Paraguay and three in Brazil.

In its industrial process, it seeks to make full use of grains, and, in addition to anhydrous and hydrated ethanol, it produces DDGS - a source of energy and protein with high added value for animal nutrition and corn oil used as an energy inducer in the manufacture of feed. and biodiesel. The industry is also self-sufficient in the generation of electrical energy, the surplus of which is sent to the grid. READ MORE