Brasília, 7/21/2004 (Agência Brasil) - The director of the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), Koichi Yajima, and a group of technicians are in Brazil to begin studies on the production of alternative fuels. A biodiesel is the priority, although some financing will go to Brazil's sugarcane-based ethanol fuel, which is used pure or added to gasoline and already enjoys widespread use in Brazil. The JBIC is thinking in terms of a long-term investment loan of US$600 million.

According to minister of Agriculture, Roberto Rodrigues, the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) will match the Japanese funding.

Meanwhile, Japan has authorized its fuel suppliers to add 3% ethanol to the gasoline sold in the country. That could translate into a demand for 10 billion liters annually (at the moment Japanese demand for ethanol is 1.8 billion liters annually). If Brazil is to meet that additional demand, it will have to expand its sugarcane cropland by some 2 million hectares (Brazil currently uses 14 billion liters of ethanol domestically, using a mixture of 25% for gasoline-fueled cars, besides having a large fleet of vehicles that run only on its sugarcane-based ethanol).

Repórter: Nádia Faggiani
Tradutor: Allen Bennett