Summit Agricultural Group, a US private equity firm, plans to invest US$2 billion in the construction of a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) plant, according to the company's founder and chairman, Bruce Rastetter, speaking to Valor Econômico. The investment will be raised from investors in the United States. Named JetBio, the plant will be located in Paulínia, São Paulo state, and will utilize both sugarcane-based and second-crop corn-based ethanol in its operations. The city in the interior of São Paulo was chosen because it is located in an industrial corridor with access to highways and railways. Production is scheduled to begin in 2030. This is not Summit's first investment in Brazil. In 2011, the group made its first deal in a land fund, which was eventually sold almost a decade later. Currently, Summit is a shareholder in FS – the second-largest corn ethanol producer in Brazil – along with Tapajós Participações and Amaggi. The group's investments in the country already total almost R$ 10 billion, according to the businessman. "The opportunity lies in using the experience we've gained investing in Brazil to further advance the ethanol value chain in the country," says Rastetter.
This text was translated by machine from Brazilian Portuguese.