COFCO to lay cornerstone on 50K tonne cellulosic ethanol project

In China, the first phase of COFCO Corporation’s cellulosic ethanol production line with capacity of 50,000 metric tons per year will lay a foundation in Zhaodong in December, which will launch in 2013. COFCO invested $156.7 million in the production line of cellulosic ethanol with capacity of 100,000 tons per year.

The project expands upon the pilot it has been running since 2007 that produces 500 tons per year. The production cost has come down to $956 per ton from $3,134 per ton in 2006 thanks to Celic CTec2, a new product of Novozymes, can not only shorten the fermentation time, but also reduce the outcome of byproducts.