University of Florida picks Florida Crystals as partner for Cellulosic ethanol plant

The US took another step forward in development of cellulosic ethanol Monday when The University of Florida chose a site owned by Florida Crystals for a $20 million cellulosic ethanol plant that will produce up to 2 million gallons of ethanol per year.

A grant from the State of Florida is the source of the funding for the University-owned plant, which now much choose a contractor for plant construction. The facility will be the first cellulosic ethanol facility in the country operating on a commercial basis. The US is expected to produce up to 12 billion gallons of ethanol fuel next year, but cellulosic ethanol is considered a national priority because it has a higher net energy yield than current methods and does not utilize the edible parts of plants.

Florida Crystals owns nearly nearly 180,000 acres of land on which is grows sugar cane and rice, and operates three sugar mills and a rice mill.

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