Why they're Hot: Cosan – #34 so far (unranked last year)

The Latest News: In September, Cosan announced the inauguration of their newest ethanol, sugar and electricity facility in Caarapó.  Listed as part of the Shell/Cosan joint venture Biofuels reported on August 26th, the facility will process 2.5 million tons of sugarcane to produce 90 Mly of ethanol (23 Mgy), 185,000 tons of sugar and cogenerate 76 MWh/yr of electricity from sugar bagasse.  This is Cosan’s first plant in the State of Mato Grosso do Sul.

The Digest’s Take: The Caarapo opening aside, all eyes on are on the Shell-COsan JV. Shell’s put its biofuels assets in the hat, but Cosan has put its entire self into it. Will the combined assets be more than the sum of the parts? Can it work as a JV? This Brazilian giant has a big year ahead of it in every way.