Chinese corn processors betting on bio-fuel production despite state control
www.chinaview.cn 2007-01-01 BEIJING, Jan. 1 (Xinhua) --
Chinese corn processors are betting on bio-fuel production despite government curbs on expansion of the industry. Earlier December, worries of grain supply shortages prompted the government to halt approval of new projects that process corn into ethanol,which is mixed with gasoline at a ratio of 1:10 as fuel for automobiles. However, huge profits have lured investors and local governments to continue preparing new projects, with an annual output of more than 10 million tons of fuel ethanol planned, almost ten times the current 1.02 million tons. The government estimates that ethanol-mix gasoline will account for half of domestic gasoline consumption by 2010, 2.5 times the current percentage. Meanwhile, some processors dodge policy restrictions by claiming to make alcohol, which can be conveniently turned into fuel ethanol once the government eases limits. China's corn processors are expanding their production capacity of alcohol by an estimated 1.6 million tons per year, according to China National Grain and Oils Information Center.
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