Billionaire investor George Soros is warning that U.S. and European tariffs on Brazilian ethanol might keep that country from reaching its potential in alternative fuel production.
According to this story posted on Bloomberg.com, Soros, who is a major investor in Brazil’s ethanol industry, needs bigger markets to justify the expansion and building of new distilleries there:
“Unless the markets in the rest of the world are opened up, you probably have overproduction coming online,” Soros told reporters today in Sao Paulo, where he was attending an ethanol seminar. “You’ve got prohibitive tariffs both in the U.S. and Europe.”
Ethanol investment in Brazil has soared in recent years as gasoline prices rose to records and demand increased for alternative fuels in the U.S., Europe and Asia. The U.S., which makes ethanol from corn, imposes an import tariff of 54 cents a gallon on Brazilian supplies. The European Union has a 19-cent levy.
The tariffs discourage Brazilian mills from exporting the record ethanol output this year, Soros said.
Of course, American ethanol and corn producers point out this country doesn’t need to switch from one foreign import, oil, to another one, Brazilian ethanol.
But it’s not just American opposition that is stalling the Brazilians:
Environmental rules will prevent Brazil from reaching a potential 10-fold increase in output, said Soros, who became the main shareholder last year in Adeco Agropecuaria Brasil Ltda., a Brazilian sugar and ethanol producer.
Brazil’s currency also is overvalued and interest rates are too high, discouraging investments, he said.
Soros does go on to point out that anti-American Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is also banking on Brazilian and American ethanol production falling flat… keeping the U.S. dependant on Venezuela’s oil.
Attendees to the American Wind Energy Association’s annual conference going on this week in Los Angeles heard that their industry faces quite a challenge to go from the current 1% of U.S. energy supplies to President Bush’s goal of 20% by 2030. In fact, it could be a half-billion-dollar challenge.
Toronto, Canada-based Bio-Extraction Inc. is joining with BioNex Energy Corp to develop and test, and then prove the commercial viability of using a cold crushing technology to more efficiently extract oils from seeds for use in a BEC biodiesel refinery in the works in western Canada.
After testing B20 biodiesel for nearly the last six months, the California Department of Transportation could be switching some of its vehicles to the cleaner fuel.
What’s ahead on the road for ethanol? That’s what a new report will attempt to predict.
Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry is hosting a conference on biofuels October 16-17th in Oklahoma City. More information is on the way but this web site 
It is my pleasure to invite you to attend to the Oklahoma Governor’s Conference on Biofuels.
A showdown over ethanol is brewing at the Organization of American States’ General Assembly meeting this week in Panama. According to 
In a paper prepared to be delivered at the assembly, the OAS says that although the hemisphere is “endowed with abundant natural resources for energy production,” the bloc’s leaders should discuss alternatives to the region’s continuing dependency on fossil fuels.
Not surprisingly, on the other side of the issue is the U.S.-hating Hugo Chavez, leader of oil-rich Venezuela. He’s joined by Cuba’s Fidel Castro, and not too surprisingly, Mexico… which has great oil reserves of its own:
On empty in East Lansing? Runnin’ low near the Alamo? The Ethanol Promotion and Information Council or EPIC has an E85 station finder on its web site 
Congress is considering some proposals that would fund studies to figure out if pipelines that would carry ethanol and biodiesel are viable options. 
Nearly 50 years in the business of engine performance should be enough experience to earn one the title of “Auto Performance Expert.” Gale Banks with