$2 Billion Could be Invested in Ethanol Production in Peru
$2 billion could be invested in the production of ethanol in Peru in 2008, stated the president of the Peruvian Association of Sugar and Biofuel Producers (APPAB, for its Spanish acronym), Pablo Bustamante.
“The sugar industry will meet the country’s demand by next year and therefore, thanks to ethanol, it is expected to double, triple or increase five times the size of this powerful industry, especially in the northern provinces in terms of social impact”, Bustamante said.
He added that there is a strong demand for ethanol production in the international market, and although Peru does not produce this fuel yet, his association has requested to include ethanol in the Agrarian Promotion Law, in order to have the same regulation as sugar production.
Thus, only a 15 percent tax would be paid on ethanol, otherwise it would present a higher risk to sugar companies that have other important investments, stated Bustamante.
“The sugar industry is still recovering from the past years’ disaster and there are many aspects to improve, there is a lot to do, I think this decision is quite simple and we can’t wait to see results”, he said.
Bustamante pointed out that there are several companies interested in investing in this sector like Maple from the United States, and several other national companies.
“Thanks to the ethanol industry we can promote new agrarian exports amounting to $1 billion a year”, he concluded.
