Brazil’s Ethanol Industry May Be Heat Up Due to Chinese’s Demand
China is being a shortfall of around 10 million tonnes of ethanol, which could allow Brazil, whose largest trading partner is China, to become a leading supplier. It is the fact that the manufacture of ethanol for exportation to china will obtain large revenue, and help to decrease emissions from using biofuel add to petrol. However, it could be worsen Brazil’s deforestation.
China has 332 million cars on the road. It is said that China is the one of countries in the world that got a quantity of cars than anywhere in the world. Most of cars run on pure petrol, and next year China is planning to add 10% ethanol of ethanol.
It is known that Brazil’s is the world’s second largest biofuel industry, but it has suffered from fuel price shocks from shifting of government policy, but it has been encouraged by the enormous potential of the Chinese market.
There is an analysis from environmentalists that adding ethanol to Chinese petrol will cut greenhouse gas emissions, but they are unconscious of the consequences, as biofuel industry requires an enormous of corn and sugarcane area to manufacture ethanol. From this issue, it cannot help encroaching on forests.
“There is the risk of trading one problem – fossil fuels – for one that is much worse: deforestation,” said Ricardo Junqueira Fujii, a conservation analyst at NGO WWF-Brazil.
In the sector of Chinese government, has announced the new biofuel quota in September 2017 as part of the commitment to reduce fossil fuel consumption under the Paris Agreement on climate change.
However, Eduardo Leão, executive director of the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association (UNICA), “the economic benefits are undeniable”. He interviewed Diálogo Chino (the independent journalism platform devoted to covering the relationship between China, Latin America and the environment)
“China is making preparations to produce its own ethanol from imported raw materials but there may be limits to its production capacity, which would create opportunities for Brazil”. said Ricardo Tomczyk, president of the National Union of Maize Ethanol (UNEM).
