Biofuel ventures gain traction in Peru, Caribbean nations use CAFTA to import Brazilian ethanol into US

The Miami Herald published a roundup of Latin American efforts to increase biofuel production. The article tracked export efforts by Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Costa Rica and El Salvador to import sugar ethanol from Brazil, process it and ship to the US because CAFTA regulations permit this duty-free, as opposed to the 54-cent-per-gallon tariff imposed on direct imports from Brazil into the US., The article also profiled the sugar cane project of Maple Energy in the northern Peruvian state of Piura, where 20,000 acres of sugarcane will be developed for ethanol export.

In other Latin American biofuels news, Pure Biofuels Corp announced the closing of a $30 million round of private financing. The financing will be used to complete its  52.5 million gallon per year biodiesel plant in Lima, Peru. The company also plans to complete the acquisition of Interpacific Oil and the expansion of that facility from its current 7 million gallons per year to 10 million gallons per year. The company also plans feasibility studies for the company’s expansion in palm, jatropha, and canola for Argentina and Peru.

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