Developer. De Souza Meirelles is leading a project for expansion of ethanol.

Interview with brazilian producer Joao Carlos de Souza Meirelles.

His company, Frontera Norte, is working on the development of new agricultural zones, founded three cities and colonized one million hectares, mostly in Mato Grosso. Strong commitment to energy sugar cane.

Frontera Norte Ingeniería de Desarrollo Limitada is a company with over 30 years in the development of large zones of new agricultural frontiers of Brazil. “We did what we call in Portuguese, colonization.” said to “La Voz del Campo” the engineer Joao Carlos de Souza Meirelles, group member and former secretary of agriculture of the state of San Pablo. Coming from a family of Portuguese immigrants but with several generations among Brazilian farmers, De Souza Meirelles is one of the “fathers” of the raise of Brazil as the first world exporter of beef.

He also participated in Cordoba as a speaker in the first Argentine-Brazilian Corporate Bioenergy Summit.

He explained that the ventures of Frontera Norte opened opportunities for farmers in southern Brazil with large families who sought new lands for themselves and their children. “To give an example, we have developed rural activities in the state of Mato Grosso in more than one million hectares. These were virgin lands, we did projects, soil´s studies, nature conservation and build cities. I have built three cities on this new frontier, ” De Souza boastful.

- What economic units are we talking about?

Near the cities are small plots for vegetables, fruit farmers who supply urban areas, ranging from one to five hectares. Then, properties that can range from 120 to 250 acres, and ranging from 250 to 2500 or 5000 acres. And more distant from these towns, properties can have 25 thousand acres.

- And in the field of bioenergy, which projects has the company?

In the past two years we have developed a very important project for forming a cluster of bioenergy, it is not a factory or an industry, but a set of three large projects. Each one will plant 60 thousand hectares of sugar cane, a total of 180 thousand hectares. The are about 80 kilometers from one another so the total production reaches one billion liters of ethanol per year, and also electricity will be produced. The industrial part is final study, the construction will be contracted in 2010 and the first unit will start producing in 2012, the second in 2014 and third in 2016.

There is a concern about relative prices, with oil at $ 57 a barrel and soybeans to more than $ 400 a tonne in Chicago. How does this affect the business of biofuels?

-First, the relative prices of oil impacting the entire side of farming inputs (fertilizers and defense derivates). Secondly, for us to produce ethanol and electricity in Brazil, if oil is above the $ 40 we are absolutely competitive with ethanol. And all the experts in the world are convinced that the level of oil prices will stabilize in the coming years around the $ 60. And we are looking increasingly competitive, in five to 10 years we can be competitive with oil $35 or $ 37 a barrel.

In Argentina, and in Córdoba there is great expertise in producing agricultural commodities.

 What do you recommended to guide investment in agro-bio?

-It would be much pretension to make recommendations, but I would allow myself a reflection: what are the problems that farmers, were they from Argentina, Brazil or anywhere, have experienced in the past. 50 years ago we were not the most important thing in our economy because our countries lived of our productions of wheat, corn, meat, coffee. What happened? The generations that came imagined that only the industry was the national salvation and peasants, were considered the second in importance. The great revolution is changing the notion that we are not producers of raw materials but a very important part of the production chain. And if we do not organize the production chain, we are always going to be the absorbers of international prices. The other always win, and we, the producers, are compressed in terms of prices. But if we participate in the organization of the productive chain, of the concepts of price formation and increased productivity, we will be the most important in the chain.

Carlos Petroli

Source: La Voz/ Córdoba / Argentina

Tunuyán, first municipality to participate in the Bioenergy Program for UNC.

Tunuyan, also participates in investigations of oilseed rape, topinambur and biomass.

The municipality supports the research and development of biodiesel with a monthly financial contribution. Besides is the only department involved in the Bioenergy Program for 2007-2010.

Tunuyan is the only department across the province participating in the Bioenergy Program 2007-2010. With a monthly financial contribution, the municipality of Tunuyan supports research and development of biodiesel.

In addition, the department hosted a major meeting between the president of the Bioenergy Program at the National University of Cuyo, Jorge E. Núñez Mc Leod, and the mayor Eduardo Giner.

In the extensive meeting they highlighted the importance of being the only department of the province which works with the relationship between society and the Bioenergy Program.

The Bioenergy Program of Universidad Nacional de Cuyo emerges as a necessity to fill a vacancy on expert knowledge in the area of biofuels.

This project has a horizon of 4 years and aims to achieve scientific and technological definition of biofuel cycles adapted to regional realities in the province of Mendoza.

The department is part of a list of entities that are merged with the goal of making the UNC self-sufficient in biofuels to 2010.

Tunuyan, also participates in investigations of oilseed rape, topinambur and biomass.

Source: MDZ/Mendoza/Argentina

The Export.Ar Foundation again, is in the organization of the presentation of the argentine delegation in the “World Biofuels Markets Congress 2009” that will be carried out from March 16 to18 of 2009, in Brussels, Belgium.Â

This exhibition that offers a unique access to the world of the Biofuels in all its production and distribution chain, attracts 1400 participants from more than 78 countries being the biggest and most important Bio-fuel Congress of Europe. It will have 200 of the best lecturers of the sector and more than 100 exhibitors.

The objective of this Foundation is to promote this sector, including all the items and energy sources, in this event through an Institutional Stand that will position our country as renewable energy supplier in the whole productive chain. Being an “Institutional Pavilion”, the Export.Ar Foundation will set up a stand equipped with tables and seats to maintain meetings, a plasma to show a video of the indicative of the sector, logo of Argentina and of the participant companies. Â

For this, we hope to have the support of the private sector that is doing investigations and developments in this sector, with the purpose of showing an interesting national presentation. The main and only condition to be able to participate inside the Argentine Pavilion is that the products/ services exposed be of national production.Â

Additionally, Argentina will have a panel in the “Global Biodiesel Session” on March 17 in this Congress, in which a presentation on what is being done in Argentina will be carried out ¦lt;br /> For more information, to see the calendar and the lecturers you can visit the official web site: www.worldbiofuelsmarkets.comÂ

PARTICIPATION COSTS INSIDE OF THE NATIONAL PAVILIONÂ

The participation is subsidized by this Foundation for what the cost ascends to Euro 700. – per company in order to include the company logo in the Pavilion and in the presentation of the “Speaker panel.”Â

This cost DOES NOT INCLUDE the access passes to the conferences, but it is sought to request them through this Foundation to obtain the benefits for being a non-profit organization.Â

All those interested will be able to contact:

Lic. Juan A. Grassi E.mail: jgi@mrecic.gov.ar Â

Tel.: (5411) 4315-4841 int. 203

Commercial promotion

Algae Derived Biodiesel for airplanes.

Tim Zenk, of Sapphir Energy, explains the process to produce biodiesel from algae. Photo: AP.Â

The airplane, of the Continental Airlines company, has completed a 90 minutes itinerary through the Gulf of Mexico.Â

The development of the biofuels starts to pick up its first successes in the aeronautical industry. Continental American Airlines an airline company from the United States has completed with success the first flight of an airplane propelled with a mixture of algae derived biodiesel and fuel, as it was informed by the press of USA. The itinerary, that has lasted 90 minutes and that has been operated by a Boeing 737-800, has resulted “better than expected”, as a spokesman of the company informs.Â

The flight, carried out this Wednesday, left from the international airport of Houston and completed a circuit through the Gulf of Mexico. According to the pilot Rich Jankowski, the airplane, first one to use alternative fuels in the United States, “worked perfectly”. The test has been the last one of an experiment series of the aeronautical industry that hopes to be able to apply biofuels in five years.Â

According to the executive director of Continental Airlines, Larry Kellner, no modification in the design of the airplane has been necessary for the use of the biofuel.Â

Source: El País/Madrid/España

The bond issue responds to growing interest from investors, who wish to support climate change-related projects in developing countries.

The green bonds will support the Bank’s climate action projects (both mitigation and adaptation).

The bond is an example of innovation the Bank is trying to encourage to stimulate public and private-sector financing for climate action

The World Bank recently launched its first “green bonds” designed to raise additional funding for projects or programs that support low-carbon activities in client countries.

In partnership with SEB, the World Bank raised approximately US$350 million via several key Scandinavian institutional investors. The bond issue responds to growing interest from sustainable or socially responsible institutional investors, as well as some individual investors, who wish to support climate change-related projects in developing countries.

The bond issue is one example of the kind of innovation the Bank is trying to encourage within its Strategic Framework for Development and Climate Change, endorsed by the Development Committee at the last Annual Meetings in October. One objective of the Framework is to help stimulate and coordinate new public and private-sector financing for climate action. The offering is the first time the Bank has offered bonds to raise funds identified to a specific program.

In a statement issued when the bonds were launched, President Robert Zoellick said “Tackling climate change is going to take immense resources that will only come from a well-orchestrated flow of public and private finance. This transaction is an important early effort to show one way in which this can be done.”

For its part, SEB President and CEO Annika Falkengren said “With this issue, we have been able to offer our clients a product through which they can accomplish three things: take a stand towards fighting global warming; support the World Bank and its members in their efforts to fight poverty; and secure a higher return than government securities by investing in the World Bank’s Aaa/AAA-rated bonds.”

The first issue of green bonds was denominated in Swedish kronor (SEK) for a total amount of SEK 2.325 billion and has a maturity of six years. At the time of issuance, the interest rate payable annually was 0.25 percent above Swedish government bond rates, for a yield to investors of 3.15% per annum. SEB is the sole lead manager and offered the bonds to investors through its distribution network.

“This new product is a special funding opportunity for the World Bank and investors since it supports climate change investments in our client countries,” said Doris Herrera-Pol, Director and Global Head of Capital Markets at the Bank. “We are very grateful to SEB and the investors for their interest and partnership, and to all those who have supported in finding and implementing a solution to respond to this increasing investor demand for ‘green’ investment products.”

Green bonds support mitigation and adaptation

The green bonds will support the Bank’s climate action projects (both mitigation and adaptation).

Examples of the types of mitigation projects supported would be:

Rehabilitation of power plants and transmission facilities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions;
Solar and wind installations;

Funding for new technologies that result in significant reductions in GHG emissions;

Greater efficiency in transportation, including fuel switching and mass transport;

Waste (methane emission) management and construction of energy efficient housing;

Carbon reduction through reforestation and avoided deforestation.

Examples of the types of adaptation projects supported by the bonds would be

Protection against flooding (including reforestation and watershed management);

Food security improvement and stress-resilient crops (which will slow down deforestation);
Sustainable forest management and avoided deforestation.

A special “green account” to manage the funds

A special “green account” will be used for proceeds from green bonds. At the end of every quarter, funds will be deducted from this account and added to the World Bank’s lending pool in an amount equal to that quarter’s new, “green” disbursements to support eligible projects.

Warren Evans, Environment Director at the Bank, said “we’re delighted not only to see real investor interest in this new offering from our Treasury colleagues, but also to know that the expanded pool of available resources to support our work on climate change will allow us to do more and go faster in helping client countries move onto low-carbon development paths.”

It will be destined to the last technology diesel vehicle segment.

YPF presented Euro Diesel, the first gasoil of the country with a maximun sulfur content of 50 ppm (parts per million), destined to the last techology diesel vehicle segment that are equipped with advanced systems of postreatment of the gas emissions that assure the execution of the demand of the Euro 4 norm. Â

The Euro norm is used in the European community to identify the emission values of the new diesel vehicles, which in turn adopts different demand grades: Euro 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. �
In a first stage, the new fuel will be available in 40 YPF service stations of the Federal Capital, the Great Buenos Aires and the Atlantic Coast and the offer will extend to 300 stations by June of 2009. The Euro Diesel will have a price per liter of 3,199 pesos, as it was informed.Â

The offer of the Euro Diesel is additional to the current volume of UIltraDiesel XXI, and it will concentrate on assisting the demand of last generation vehicles, therefore both products will cohabit in the service stations.Â

Source: La Voz