Jamaica Broilers Group President and CEO Robert Levy (second left) speaking with (from left) Energy Minister Phillip Paulwell, Bauche Energy Managing Director, Philip Robinson, and Brazilian Ambassador to Jamaica Cezar Amaral, at the December 12 signing of the wet ethanol supply agreement between Bauche and Broilers at the latter company's corporate headquarters, McCooks Pen, St. Catherine. - contributed

Robert Levy, presi-dent and CEO of the Jamaica Broilers Group (JBG), has inked a deal with Switzerland-based Bauche Energy guaranteeing a source of wet ethanol for his planned $1.1 billion (US$17 million) dehy-dration plant, but the company remains on the hunt for supply markets.

On Monday, Broilers' senior vice-president of finance and planning, Ian Parsard, said supplies under the agreement would flow from Brazil - Bauche has a wholly-owned subsidiary in Sao Paulo - but he also told Wednesday Business that the company was exploring other options.

"All supplies are contemplated to originate from Brazil," said Parsard in emailed responses to queries about the Bauche agreement signed December 12 with the energy company's managing director Phillip Robinson.

"However, other sources - including China and India - are also being explored."

Bauche is to supply all 50 million gallons, Parsard said, but the firm will be tapping various suppliers to meet its commitment to Broilers.

Bauche's website describes Bauche Energy Brasil as being "very much involved in the development of new programmes in the bio-fuel sector through joint-ventures, finance and long- term investment," but Parsard said the agribusiness company would be taking no stake in the Broilers ethanol plant.

Contracts

JBG is trying to secure contracts for some "50 million gallons of wet ethanol for the first year of operation," said Parsard, but he resisted comment on the price at which the company is buying the raw material, saying the group could not release any of those details.

Broilers, however, would hunt raw material at prices substantially below fuel grade ethanol which on Monday traded on U.S. markets at prices ranging from US$2.20 per gallon up to US$2.56 in different states.

The Broilers plant, the permit for which is still pending from the National Environment and Planning Agency, is to have a capacity of 60 million gallons of ethanol.

The company proposes to convert hydrous to anhydrous ethanol, processed to fuel grade, for sale into markets in the United States where the demand for renewables is growing, as that oil-dependent economy hunts for alternatives to expensive fossils.

Broilers also points to potential markets in Canada, Central America, as well as the Caribbean where countries like Jamaica are reorganising their energy mix to incorporate more renewable sources.

Jamaica hopes eventually to replace 10 per cent of MBTE in gasolene with ethanol.