TORTONA, Italy — Italian chemical group Mossi & Ghisolfi, M&G, plans to build a 200,000-tonne bioethanol plant and convert it to using cellulose feedstock as pressure mounts on the sector to make more environment-friendly biofuels. Traditional biofuels — produced from grains, vegetable oils and sugar cane — are facing strong criticism for driving food prices up and for limited contribution to cuts in heat-trapping gas emissions. M&G Vice President Guido Ghisolfi said his group with partners would invest about 100 million euros ($148.1 million) to build the biggest bioethanol plant in Italy by 2009 and 120 million euros more in research to convert it to cellulose feedstock later on. The plant in the north Italian region of Piedmont would produce 200,000 tons, or about 2.5 million hectoliters of bioethanol to help Italy meet its bioethanol target of about 1 million tons by 2010, Ghisolfi said. ‘Our goal is to be competitive with Brazilian ethanol even without subsidies,’ Ghisolfi said on the sidelines of a biofuels conference, brushing off sector concerns that Italian bioethanol producers have been hit by limited fiscal brakes. The new plant would initially use 600,000 tons of maize as feedstock and Tortona-based […]