Ethanol sales by production units in the Center-South are still below the pace observed in the 2019/2020 harvest. The volume sold in the first fifteen days of May this year totaled 1.05 billion liters, with a retraction of 22.00% in comparison with the same period in 2019 (1.35 billion liters). Of this total, 33.94 million liters were destined for the foreign market and 1.02 billion liters domestically.

In the domestic market, sales of hydrous ethanol reached 729.23 million liters in the first half of May, with a reduction of 24.00% over the amount recorded in the same period of the last harvest (959.43 million liters). The marketed quantity of anhydrous ethanol, in turn, fell by 23.82%: 292.57 million liters sold in 2020, against 384.04 million liters in 2019.

For the technical director of UNICA, Antonio de Padua Rodrigues, "the retraction in sales of hydrated ethanol was not only greater due to the high competitiveness of biofuel in the national market"

In fact, a price survey by the National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP) shows that in the last week, only 17 municipalities in the sample found in the states of São Paulo, Paraná, Minas Gerais and Goiás presented price parity with the above gasoline 70%. The values indicate that, on average, the relative price of hydrated ethanol in relation to gasoline reached 62.6% in Mato Grosso, 63.4% in São Paulo, 65.9% in Minas Gerais and 66.5% in Goiás.

Accumulated since the beginning of the 2020/2021 harvest until May 16, ethanol sales by companies in the Center-South accumulated a 26.28% decrease, totaling 2.85 billion liters. Of this total, 110.71 million liters were destined for export and 2.74 billion for the domestic market.

In the domestic market, the accumulated growth in sales of ethanol for non-fuel purposes is noteworthy. The volume for other purposes reached 174.49 million liters until May 16 this year, registering an increase of 87.17% in comparison with the quantity sold in the same period of the last harvest (93.22 million liters)

For Rodrigues, "this increase reiterates the importance of preserving the activities of this industry in view of the greater demand for alcohol for disinfection and asepsis". Despite the growth, the volume of product for non-fuel use represented only 6% of the plants' commercialization, thus not allowing any compensation in the fall in fuel ethanol sales, he added.

Milling and production of sugar and ethanol 

The amount of sugarcane processed by the production units in the Center-South region totaled 42.46 million tons in the first half of May, an increase of 8.76% over the amount recorded in the same half of the 2019/2020 harvest - 39 , 04 million tons.

Surpassing the advance of the harvest, sugar production increased 55.80% in the first half of May this year and reached 2.50 million tons, against 1.61 million tons verified in the same fortnight of the previous year. The volume of ethanol produced, in turn, reached 1.82 billion liters in the fortnight, with 503.95 million liters of anhydrous ethanol and 1.32 billion liters of hydrated ethanol.

In the accumulated since the beginning of the 2020/2021 cycle until May 16, the crushing reached 103.02 million tons - growth of 21.67% in comparison with the 2019/2020 harvest.

During this period, 45.31% of the sugarcane was destined for sugar production, compared to 32.19% registered on the same date in 2019. With this, the accumulated sugar production reached 5.49 million until May 16 of this year. crop, against 2.98 million tons verified on the same date of the 2019/2020 cycle.

Rodrigues points out that “the increase of 2.5 million tons in sugar production observed so far reflects the trend of a sugar harvest due to the poorer remuneration of biofuel in relation to the sweetener and the advance of the harvest due to favorable weather conditions. " This production also reflects the greater demand for Brazilian sugar at the beginning of this harvest, concluded the executive.

In fact, sales data from plants in the Center-South show that the amount of sugar traded grew in the first three quarters of the 2020/2021 harvest. Accumulated sales in the domestic market reached 975.47 thousand tons, an increase of 4.14%. The amount exported by the companies, in turn, reached 2.38 million tons, an increase of 48.88% in comparison with the index registered on May 16 of last year.

The accumulated production of ethanol from the beginning of the 2020/2021 harvest until May 16 totaled 4.40 billion liters, of which 1.12 billion liters of anhydrous ethanol and 3.28 billion liters of hydrous ethanol.

These values include the production of renewable energy from corn. Corn production in the 2020/2021 season accumulated an increase of 92.42% compared to the same period of the 2019/2020 cycle, reaching 293.39 million liters until May 16 (86.77 million liters of anhydrous ethanol and 206, 62 million liters of hydrate).

In relation to the number of plants in operation, 21 units started the harvest in the first half of May 2020. As a result, 235 companies registered production until May 16, against 240 industrial units on the same date last year. In the second half of May, 10 units are expected to start production and another 12 will start operating in early June.

Of the total units in operation, 40 manufacture exclusively ethanol, 4 of which are dedicated to the production of biofuel from corn. These units that do not produce sugar were responsible for 15% of the milling and 32% of the ethanol production.

“The increase in production and the retraction in ethanol sales have been more damaging to companies that only manufacture biofuel”, explains Rodrigues.

Data obtained until May 16 this year show that the attached units managed to store more than 90% of the production recorded so far. Autonomous distilleries, on the other hand, were only able to stock about 50% of the biofuel production, as they do not have an alternative recipe for the payment of production costs.

“The situation is difficult and the units that depend only on ethanol are forced to sell the product at any price in order to continue producing and maintaining jobs. The availability of financial resources for the storage of ethanol would be essential to solve the problem. We are almost two months into the harvest and we still have no definition of a possible line of financing for ethanol inventories, ”added Rodrigues.

Quality of raw material 

The quality of the raw material processed in the first half of May, measured from the concentration of Total Recoverable Sugars (ATR), increased 9.25% reaching 130.82 kg per ton in 2020 against 119.75 kg verified in the same fortnight of the last year. Accumulated, the indicator points to 123.48 kg of ATR per ton, with an increase of 7.37% in relation to the value of the 2019/2020 harvest.