Mozambique's Agriculture Minister has confirmed his country has signed a huge $510 (€360) million deal with London-listed Central African Mining & Exploration Company Plc (CAMEC) to establish an energy plantation and to build a plant to produce 120 million litres of ethanol per year, as well as fertilizers. The plan was described earlier (here), but there was uncertainty over its scope.
Agriculture Minister Erasmo Muhate said the deal envisages raw material for the ethanol will be sugarcane planted over an area of 30,000 hectares in the southern province of Gaza.
I hope that with this project a city emerges, and there will be more benefits for local communities, while helping to cut Mozambique's high fuel costs. - Agriculture Minister Erasmo MuhateCurrent high oil prices are catastrophic for oil importing, energy intensive developing countries, which can spend up to 15% of their GDP on importing fuels (compared to 2-3% for OECD countries). The ethanol produced in Mozambique will therefor bring major economic benefits....MORE
