Cuban ethanol production may be limited to bagasse while Fidel Castro lives; financing unclear for shift in stance from Havana

In Cuba, analysts say that Cuban ethanol production will be limited to production from sugar by-product that does not affect the food sugar output.

A Reuters report, quoting local sources, said it would be unthinkable for Raul Castro to increase ethanol production from food sugar, given Fidel Castro’s characterization of the practice as a “crime against humanity”. But it was not clear how Cuba would finance the conversion of its ethanol capacity to making cellulosic ethanol from bagasse. Currently, Cuba imports 85 percent of its food, and other analysts say that the intergrated product stream from revived ethanol production — including sugar, ethanol, paper, cattle feed — could revive Cuban agriculture in a country where former sugar plantations have been overrun by weed infestations.

A Biofuels Digest news analysis was published on Friday on the Castro regime’s secret buildup of sugar ethanol production capacity, while calling biofuels a “crime against humanity” in public comments.
The potential for Cuba to produce between 2 billion and 3.2 billion gallons per year of sugar cane ethanol has been projected by industry analysts.

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