Need Sugarcane Cuttings For Ethanol

[EnergyCrops]

Hi everyone,

I don't actually have a farm in Thailand but don't hold that against me. I do live and work in Bangkok. I just can't afford the outrageous land prices over here so my farm is in Cambodia.

My primary interest is in growing energy crops. I have several thousand oil palms growing, but I will have to wait about 5 years before they are profitable. In the mean time, I need to do something else.

I would like to grow sugarcane. The locals have told me there are several types of sugarcane, and only 1 of them is the variety that people use to make ethanol, which is my primary interest. They also tell me this particular variety is not available in Cambodia.

I have been unable to find any useful information on the web, so I am appealing to all of you in the hope that someone will take pity on me and help me out. Honestly, I have no idea what I'm doing. I'm a telecom engineer, not a farmer. However, recent global events have made me realize that farming is alot more useful than pounding on a keyboard in the long run.

My questions regarding oi are:

#1) Can someone tell me what is the best variety of sugarcane to grow for ethanol production?

#2) If I wanted to purchase cuttings for about 2 hectares (12.5 rai) as a test, where could I find someone willing to sell this to me?

#3) Approximately how much space (volume in m3) would cuttings for 2 hectares take up?

#4) What is a reasonable price to pay for the cuttings?

The ideal situation would be to find someone on the way between Bangkok and Chantaburi or Aranyaprathet where I could stop and pick up these clippings over a period of several weeks during normal trips to the farm.

Very happy to have found this forum, and I hope one day I will have enough experience that I can contribute.

[Maizefarmer]

Here are your choices:

U Thong 1

- High yielding (120 t/ha)

- Good tillering- Good ratooning

- Smut resistance

- Moderate drought tolerance

- Harvesting age 11-13 months

- Mid-Late milling season

- Central, Northeast and East regions

- Loam soil

U Thong 2

- High yielding (100 t/ha)

- Early sugar accumulation

- Smut resistance

- Harvesting period 9-11 months

- Early milling season

- Loam soil

U Thong 3

- High yielding (100 t/ha)

- Good tillering

- Good ratooning

- Smut resistantce

- Green grassy shoot tolerance.

- Early flowering

- Harvesting age 10-12 months

- Irrigated or semi-irrigated area

- Central and Central North region

- Loam soil

K 90-77

- High yielding (110 t/ha)

- Good ratooning

- Drought tolerance

- Red rot wilt resistant

- Non-flowering

- Harvesting age 12 months

- Late - milling

- Rain-fed area

- Loam, Sandy loam

Phil 66-07

- Yield (80 t/ha)

- Good tillering

- Good ratooning

- Drought tolerance

- Harvesting age 11-12 months

- Loamy sand soil

- Northeast region

- Loamy sand soil

Phil 58-260

- Yield (80 t/ha)

- Good tillering

- Non-flowering

- Medium drought tolerance

- Harvesting age 11-12 months

- Clay loam soil

- Northeast region

- Loamy sand soil

Harvesting starts in the North East in December so get your self round to a farmer with a couple 10t-12ton trucks and buy off the field – so you can see what you are getting (e.g. check you are not getting smut infested “sets”).

You may wish to look very closely at the economics of what you intend to do – fine if its an experiment for the sake of learning something, but for the sake of saving money – me thinks not – you may be best buying the amount of cane you wish to process – nothing worse than waiting 12 – 18 months for a cane crop that doesn’t do well for some or other reason.

[chownah]

I believe that it is sugar that is converted to ethanol so any kind of cane that makes sugar would work and the cane that makes the most sugar the most economically would be the best kind for ethanol......or for sugar for human consumption. I don't think that there is any particular kind that is best for ethanol other than it makes alot of sugar........but I don't know for sure.....google around a bit and I'm sure it will all become clear.

Chownah

[nonthaburial]

The world sugar market dictates the prices of sugar cane, thats why cassava is more popular with Ethanol Plants

[seykota]

We are in the process of preparing our farm for growing sugar cane as a refinery has recently set up a collection depot in our town. Our farm is about 60 rai and my brother in law has about 25 rai very close to us. We are thinking that as this year will be a drought year, it would be better if we only grow a small crop as a trial and to provide "sets" for next year.

I am not from a farming background but, like many others, I am trying to learn (slowly and patiently). My Thai family are "traditional" farmers, therefore I try to tackfully introduce some "up to date" techniques for our mutual benefit. They have been attending meetings held by government agricultural advisers but as my level of Thai/Lao is limited at best, I am hoping some of my fellow expats (Maizefarmer......) can provide some advice.

We are in Nong Bua Lamphu province, Amphur Naklang.

Regards

Pete

[Maizefarmer]

The above list of cane varities is just that - cane varities fr sugar production - and while it is true that any cane can be used in theory for ethanol- the "trash/yield ratio" makes U Thong 1 the best choice - which is the one that is used primarily for ethanol in Thailand.

MF

[chownah]

Is sugar extracted from the cane first and then ethanol is made?...or is the ethanol made directly from the cane?

I guess what I'm trying to find out is if you had a bunch of cane and you started processing it for ethanol then what is the first step where what you did was different from the process for making sugar.

Chownah