MH Bio-Energy Cambodia, the south-east Asian nation s only bio fuel production plant is set to reopen in October after closing due to high crop prices recorded earlier this year.
According to Cambodia s Energy ministry, the plant will reopen at the start of this year s cassava harvest. The company stopped production since April due to the high price of dry-chip cassava
The factory needed at least 10,000 tones of cassava a month to produce ethanol, a compound that can be blended with petrol to reduce carbon emissions.
But production costs for the company were squeezed at both ends earlier this year by high domestic cassava prices coupled with a low final selling price on European markets.
One tonne of dry-chip cassava currently costs $210, about 45 percent more than $145 per tonne recorded last December.
Meanwhile, the price of the bio fuel on the European market is still low, at about $500 per tonne. The price of ethanol goes hand-in-hand with the price of oil.
MH Bio-Energy Cambodia, located in Kandal province was opened in November 2008 with an initial investment of $30 million. Last year, the plant exported 29,406 tonnes of ethanol to European markets.
According to Cambodia s Energy ministry, the plant will reopen at the start of this year s cassava harvest. The company stopped production since April due to the high price of dry-chip cassava
The factory needed at least 10,000 tones of cassava a month to produce ethanol, a compound that can be blended with petrol to reduce carbon emissions.
But production costs for the company were squeezed at both ends earlier this year by high domestic cassava prices coupled with a low final selling price on European markets.
One tonne of dry-chip cassava currently costs $210, about 45 percent more than $145 per tonne recorded last December.
Meanwhile, the price of the bio fuel on the European market is still low, at about $500 per tonne. The price of ethanol goes hand-in-hand with the price of oil.
MH Bio-Energy Cambodia, located in Kandal province was opened in November 2008 with an initial investment of $30 million. Last year, the plant exported 29,406 tonnes of ethanol to European markets.
