Shell embarks on biofuels venture in Brazil

Shell has embarked on a biofuels joint venture with ethanol and sugar producer Cosan, to become a leading producer of ethanol for the retail market.

Cosan aims to produce and sell more than 500 million gallons of low-carbon biofuels annually. Shell released a statement saying, "Low-carbon biofuels will be the most practical and commercially realistic way to take carbon dioxide out of transport fuel in the coming years and will be a vital part of the future energy mix."
Biofuels currently make up about 4% of the transport fuel in Europe and 3% in the U.S., where biofuels use is predicted to increase by about 9% by 2030, according to Shell.
Shell Chief Executive Officer, Peter Voser, said, "We are building a leading position in the most efficient ethanol-producing country in the world."
The company said Brazilian sugar cane has a higher ethanol yield compared to corn or wheat and added that "Production in Brazil takes up less than 1% of the country's land and the government prohibits industries from displacing food crops. This is a turning point in the search for alternative energy sources."