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Japan makes ethanol deal with Brazil

A project between Brazil and Japan to help supply Brazilian ethanol made from sugarcane to the Japanese market could cost US$8 billion, Brazil's largest newspaper reported on Saturday.

The money would be used to take minority stakes in 40 ethanol distilleries across Latin America's largest country, ensuring Japan with a stable supply as it prepares to mandate an obligatory mix of ethanol in gasoline, the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper said.

Brazilian state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA had already confirmed it was negotiating a partnership with Japan's Mitsui & Co Ltd on the stakes, but the report quoting Petrobras executive Paulo Roberto Costa was the first time that an investment amount was disclosed.

A Petrobras spokesman did not immediately respond to a telephone message left on Saturday seeking comment.

Japan could require between 1.8 billion to 6 billion liters of ethanol per year, depending on the ethanol mix required -- between 3 percent to 10 percent -- Petrobras estimates showed.

Brazil exported 3.4 billion liters last year, of which less than 7 percent, or 225.4 million liters, went to Japan, the Brazilian Agriculture Ministry said.

Japan's National Development Bank will help with the financing of the distilleries aimed exclusively for the Japanese market, which would be built or purchased, Folha reported. Costa told the newspaper that the investment in each distillery could total US$200 million.

Aiming to ensure long-term supply for 15 years, Petrobras and Mitsui would set up a Brazil-based subsidiary.

Costa told the newspaper that Japan has insisted on guaranteed long-term supply of ethanol, an increasingly popular fuel because of persistent high oil prices.

Petrobras announced earlier this week it had signed a memorandum of interest with Mitsui and a Brazilian construction firm to study the construction of a pipeline in Brazil that would be used to help export ethanol to Japan.

No amount was disclosed on how much the pipeline could cost.
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