Ukraine plans to increase annual bioethanol production to 1 million tons, expected to generate $1.5 billion in economic benefits

en.Wedoany.com Reported - Ukraine's Ministry of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture has expressed support for updating the regulatory rules for the country's bioethanol industry, a move aimed at boosting production to 1 million tons per year, driving domestic processing development, and attracting investment. This is expected to bring approximately $1.5 billion in economic benefits to Ukraine. Deputy Minister Taras Vysotsky made these remarks during a roundtable discussion on the development of the bioethanol market, as reported by the ministry's press service.

Vysotsky noted that developing the bioethanol industry is one of Ukraine's key directions for advancing domestic processing of agricultural raw materials, attracting investment, creating jobs, and increasing the production of high-value-added products. He emphasized that legislative reform proposals put forward by relevant industry associations could help reduce administrative burdens on businesses, promote domestic processing development, attract investment, and accelerate European integration. The ministry supports decisions that help producers improve operational efficiency and create greater added value domestically.

The deputy minister stated that Ukraine needs to align its bioethanol regulatory framework with European rules, which is a necessary condition for industry growth, opening new markets, and future integration into the EU single market. He noted that the domestic bioethanol industry has recently shown rapid development, with production capacity increasing more than 2.5 times over the past year, a growth of 160%. Currently, 10 of Ukraine's 17 licensed bioethanol producers are operational, with annual output ranging from 180,000 to 200,000 tons, while existing capacity is sufficient to raise this figure to 1 million tons.

Vysotsky added that the development of the bioethanol industry will also stimulate demand for Ukraine's agricultural raw materials. A plant with an annual bioethanol production capacity of 100,000 tons can process up to 350,000 tons of corn or other biomass per year. Building such an enterprise requires an investment of $50 million to $100 million, with the overall investment potential of the industry exceeding $300 million. Additionally, a single plant can directly create about 150 jobs in production and up to 1,000 jobs in related industries.