Brazil at the top Cattle the agricultural product exports and of Brazil grew in 99 percents between 2002 and 2006, from 24.800 million dollars to 49.400 million and for 2007 the tendency to the rise stays, according to official data.       Only the offices of the cane ethanol invoiced 1.600 million dollars, against 765,5 million dollars in the 2005 and in volume the sales of the fuel raised 31 percents. Brazil is the main world-wide sugar producer and exporter and cane ethanol, a sector that invoices about 20.000 million dollars, it uses a million people in 360 producing units and is one of which they more attract investments the country, honored the Minister of Cattle Agriculture and, Luis Carlos Guedes. In the 2006 12 new cane ethanol distilleries were installed in Brazil and for 2007 other 16 are predicted. efe

The main ones     The exportable supply of Nicaragua is integrated, mainly, by farming products, of the sea and miners. Among them they excel the coffee, the meat, the gold, the shrimps of sea and culture, the lobsters, the sugar, milky and grain the basic ones like frijoles. During the 2006 total exports of the country, without including the frank zones, they added around 1.060 million dollars, the highest number in the history of the country, according to preliminary estimations.

In April the next Nicaragua it could be exporting ethanol for the first time, with a volume considered in about seven million liters to the European and North American market, sales that could leave to the country between seven and eight million dollars the year.

“Probably in April we are removing a first boarding from alcohol, fuel to the European market”, projected Noel Sacasa, director of Planning and Strategic Control of Sugar State Limited Nicaragua.

In the last two months (November and December), the Talent San Antonio has processed 175 thousand quintals of alcohol sugar and of a that good part this becoming ethanol, said to the Sacasa PRESS.

In as much Mario Amador, Secretary General of the Committee of Sugar Producers of Nicaragua (CNPA), showed that the last year 80 thousand quintals were processed and now in two months already they take more than 150 thousands.

The ethanol, extracted of the sugar cane, is due to produce under a special system, preferably must contain minim water presence, reason why the suitable one to be mixed with hydrocarbons is the anhídrico ethanol, explained Sacasa.

It explained that the alcohol that produces can use like fuel for vehicles.

HARD INVESTMENT

The civil employee of Sugar State Limited said that in the first stage for the combustible alcohol production they have invested considering of five million dollars and, in the following stage, could invest around 20 million dollars.

Sacasa showed that they have developed models to see what is more profitable, if the sugar or the ethanol.

“We have been increasing the areas of production (of cane) to produce and to export more alcohol combustible and of that form we are being diversified a little”, explained Sacasa.

It indicated that at the moment they are turning good part of the sugar production alcohol and good part goes destined to the ethanol production.

Drip jar 2006-2007, according to Sacasa, they could turn about 400 thousand quintals of sugar combustible ethanol.

“Before we produced 30 million liters of alcohol annually and probably now we are producing about 40 million liters and with an additional investment in the next years to reach 80 or 90 million liters”, indicated Sacasa.

It showed that when is producing those 90 million liters “probably about 60 million (liters) could be of combustible alcohol (ethanol)”.

In opinion of Sacasa, the international price of the alcohol has been very good, including over the price of the sugar, although it did not specify the price of this product.

It indicated that recently they installed a dehydration plant that will allow them to turn alcohol of 96 to 98 percents, to obtain ethanol, “since it clears the excess to him of water and it is possible to be mixed with gasoline”.

Francisco Baltodano, manager of the Talent Rosa Mount, said to the PRESS that is investing in a plant dehydrator to begin to produce ethanol. “We know that it has a good price in the international market”, Baltodano explained.