Sumitomo Corp is acquiring up to 20% of Cosan Biomassa, a Brazilian company that makes sugarcane pellets for power generation.
The deal – subject to the prior approval of anti-trust authorities in some jurisdictions – will facilitate the expansion of Cosan Biomassa’s exports to Japan and Europe, as well as increase domestic sales.
The venture aims to manufacture 2m tons of sugarcane pellets by 2025, rising to 8m tons in the future.
Sumitomo Corp general manager, biomass business Yoshinobu Kusano said: “By the year 2030, we foresee that Japan will consume as much as 10m+ tons of pelletized biomass, the majority of which would come from overseas.
“We believe a relevant portion of this demand will be met by agricultural waste, particularly sugarcane biomass pellets produced in Brazil.
“Sugarcane’s productivity and abundant availability tied to the fact that we are using its residual byproduct as a raw material gives us a unique sustainability condition when compared to other biomass sources in the world.”
Image: the pellets are made from sugar cane waste (sxc)
Sumitomo eyes Brazilian bio
Japanese giant acquires 20% of sugarcane pellet producer Cosan Biomassa
By EBS