Economics of Sugar-Based Ethanol Production and Related Policy Issues

Abstract

The feasibility of integrating ethanol production into an existing sugar mill was analyzed by a stochastic spreadsheet model. As the price of corn continues to rise, ethanol producers will eventually need to look at other feedstock alternatives. Sugarcane has been proven to work well in the production of ethanol in Brazil. The results indicated existing U.S. sugar mills could economically switch to ethanol production. As imports into the United States threaten to undermine the U.S. sugar program, sugarcane producers have a viable alternative. At the very least, the alternative exists to diversify their income streams with ethanol production.

Yield, water use efficiency and economic analysis of energy sorghum in South Texas

“…Only a few studies have addressed this key question of input requirements for feedstock production especially in the context of regional water resources (quantity and quality) and fertilizer costs [4]. Excessive use of scarce, expensive inputs will likely reduce the chances of economic success by inflating the overall production cost per tonne of biomass, as well as the cost per liter of biofuel [7]. The knowledge of nitrogen and water efficiency will allow farmers to adapt their production practices to climate variability and to recognize the risk of growing bioenergy crops [4].…”

Economic feasibility of sugar and ethanol production in Brazil under alternative future prices outlook

“…The SUCROSIM model was programmed in Microsoft Excel using the Simetar© add-in, following a general architecture for Monte Carlo simulation modeling used by Richardson et al (2007), Outlaw et al (2007) and Palma et al (2011). This methodology provides numerous options for analyzing different scenarios without re-programming the model.…”

“…The economic feasibility study was conducted using four different price scenarios forecasted by FAPRI-ISU, OECD-FAO, USDA, and World Bank. This method to study economic feasibility of biofuel industries has been used by Richardson et al (2007), Outlaw et al (2007) and Palma et al (2011), and others.…”

Selected Abiotic and Biotic Environmental Stress Factors Affecting Two Economically Important Sugarcane Stalk Boring Pests in the United States

“…Annual yield in terms of stalks is «1325 million tons harvested for sugar, rum, chemicals, and energy [2,[4][5][6][7]. In the United States, sugarcane production occurs mainly in Florida, Louisiana, Texas, and Hawaii [8,9].…”