By Marcelo Teixeira and Roberto Samora
By Marcelo Teixeira and Roberto Samora
NEW YORK/SAO PAULO, March 25 (Reuters) – Brazilian sugar mills had been fast to begin cane crushing within the new center-south season, processing three million tonnes within the first half of March, 88% greater than in the identical interval a 12 months earlier, cane trade group Unica stated on Wednesday.
Brazil’s cane crop 12 months formally begins in April, however mills usually go forward and kick off cane processing operations if they’ve cane prepared within the fields to be crushed. The mills allotted 14% of the cane to supply sugar within the interval in contrast with 6% within the first half of March final 12 months.
Unica stated 32 cane mills had been operational within the first half of March, in contrast with 25 at the moment final 12 months. Sugar manufacturing was 41,000 tonnes versus 9,000 tonnes final 12 months, whereas ethanol manufacturing was 244 million liters versus 147 million liters a 12 months earlier.
Antonio de Padua Rodrigues, technical director at Unica, believes it’s nonetheless early to have a exact concept of how cane allocation between sugar and ethanol will unfold within the new season.
“I do not assume we’re going to have that enormous change within the manufacturing combine (in direction of sugar) as some analysts are saying,” Rodrigues stated, including that it’ll all rely on the worldwide demand for the sweetener.
He stated there will likely be demand for ethanol in Brazil, regardless of the present hunch in fuels use as a result of precautionary measures in opposition to coronavirus, though costs will probably be a lot decrease than final 12 months.
Most analysts assume Brazilian mills will produce extra sugar within the new season due to falling costs within the gasoline market.
Gasoline costs at refineries in Brazil fell this week to the bottom degree since October 2011, after three main cuts made by Petrobras. That may probably squeeze revenue margins of ethanol producers, analysts say.
(Reporting by Marcelo Teixeira and Roberto Samora; further reporting by Marta Camargo in Rio de Janeiro; Modifying by Steve Orlofsky Modifying by Chizu Nomiyama)
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