Why it may take a while before conversion of sugar into ethanol takes off

The government’s recent decision to allow production of ethanol by reconverting sugar is a welcome step, but it remains to be seen how far the move will help address the immediate issue of burgeoning stocks of the sweetener in the 2019-20 season. This is because mills could take quite some time to make the necessary financial investments for conversion.

Also, ethanol can be made directly from sugar only in the off-season, as freshly produced stocks of the compound have very little shelf-life when storage options are limited.

The 2019-20 sugar season starts next month and peak crushing will happen in the first five or six months.