The Biofuels News Watchdog: Looking at Bloomberg's reporting from Brazil

The News Watcdog keeps his eyes and ears on the lookout for hype and disinformation

In New York, Bloomberg News is reporting that “A presidential decree in April gave Brazil’s fuel regulator Agencia Nacional do Petroleo, Gas Natural e Biocombustiveis authority over managing supply, imports and exports of ethanol,” and that “Ethanol producers that are building or expanding refineries to meet growing demand may reconsider their investments because the government may adjust pricing again if it considers inflation to be a problem, according to Adriano Pires, director of the Rio de Janeiro-based research company Centro Brasileiro de Infra Estrutura.”

The Watchdog says: Grrrr. The presidential order is, in fact, subject to amendment and approval of the Brazilian Congress, which is “very, very creative,” according to officials at the Brazilian Ministry of Mining & Energy.

Meanwhile, the Digest reported last week that Jacyr Costa Filho, CEO of Guarani, the 5th largest ethanol producer, told the Digest that “the new arrangement will promote investment into the sector”.