Ethanol inventories in Brazil's center-south sugarcane belt rose by 15pc in the second half of June as sugarcane crushing activities for the 2023-24 harvest season progress in the country's top producing region, according to agriculture ministry Mapa.
Ethanol inventories across Brazil's main producing region — comprising Sao Paulo, Minas Gerais, Goias, Parana, Mato Grosso do Sul and Mato Grosso states — reached 4.68bn liters (29.47mn bl) as of 30 June, up from 4.06bn l two weeks earlier. Stocks rose by 8.5pc from 4.31bn l in the second half of June last year.
Hydrous fuel ethanol accounted for 1.81bn l of stocks in the center-south region, rising by 19pc from early June and by 18pc from the same period last year. In Brazil, hydrous is sold as a standalone biofuel, E100, which competes with gasoline at pumps.
Stocks of anhydrous ethanol — used as a gasoline blendstock — were at 2.86bn l, up by 12pc from the prior half-month period and 2.9pc higher on the year.
Production data
Ethanol output since the beginning of the 2022-23 center-south crop cycle on 1 April through 30 June has totaled 9.56bn l, up by 6pc from the same period last year.
Cumulative cane processing since 1 April reached 207mn metric tonnes (t), an 11pc rise from the same period in 2022, while sugar production climbed to nearly 12.1mn t, a 25pc increase from a year earlier.
Ethanol demand in Brazil has been largely subdued in recent months as rapidly changing fuel prices drive gasoline consumption over the biofuel. That has encouraged mills to divert more feedstock to sugar production than in the previous harvest.
Still, total ethanol output for the season is poised to surpass 2022-23 volumes, thanks to an upswing in feedstock availability.
