Colombia finds biofuels bonanza in sugar cane

Ahead-of-the-curve planning, technological breakthroughs and government incentives have helped Colombia emerge as the No. 2 producer of ethanol in Latin America, behind Brazil, and a leader in the manufacture of biodiesel.

“We took the initiative years ago and became a pioneer,” Jorge Cardenas, president of the Colombian Biofuels Federation, said in an interview.
With just over 100 million gallons annually, Colombian ethanol production is dwarfed by the billions of gallons churned out yearly in the U.S. and Brazil.

Yet Colombia is a technological leader in the field and is experimenting with biofuel production using everything from sugar beets and palm oil to yucca.

Colombian experts are helping companies in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador set up ethanol plants.

Houston Chronicle