Mar 26, 2014

BNDESPAR, a company with stakes in the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES), will invest up to R$ 300 million in the sugarcane technology center (Centro de Tecnologia Canavieira S.A. - CTC) by underwriting new shares to be issued by the company. The resources will make up funding to develop new projects for CTC’s business plan, a Brazilian company involved in research and development for technology in the sugarcane sector.

The Bank’s support was approved within the scope of the BNDES-Finep’s Joint Support Plan for Industrial Technological Innovation in Sugarcane-based Ethanol and Chemistry Sectors (PAISS), which aims to increase productivity in the sector. This is to be done by developing new industrial technologies, for example, second generation ethanol. With this additional operation, the BNDES’ portfolio of approved projects in PAISS totals R$ 1.57 billion.

The investment is in keeping with the Bank’s priority to provide support to cutting-edge research and development in technologically-intense state-of-the-art sectors with high innovative content, such as biotechnology. BNDESPAR’s participation will help increase competitiveness in a segment of Brazilian industry that is responsible for supplying fuel to a significant portion of vehicles, as well as for annually generating nearly US$ 15 billion in investments in Brazil.

The operation also strengthens BNDES’ commitment to the capitals market, since the CTC has committed to listing shares representing its social capital on the “Bovespa PLUS” segment of the Security and Exchange Commission (BM&F Bovespa).

For the CTC, BNDESPAR’s funding enables the scale required to speed up projects that will bring new and important productivity gains to the sugarcane sector, especially in the field of biotechnology, whether it is agricultural or industrial. The Bank’s support, however, is connected to the commitment of the company’s current shareholders, representing 60% of the sector’s milling capacity, to acquire technologies being developed by the Center. The company’s business plan foresees R$ 1.2 billion in investments over a five-year period.

Founded in 1969, the CTC has participated in major agricultural and industrial technological developments in the sugarcane sector and is today one of the world’s centers for excellence in research and development focused on sugarcane, the second primary source in the national energy grid.

Developments the Center has been part of have played an important role in positioning Brazil as one of the leading forces in producing biofuels.