It takes steady nerves, and maybe a touch of folly, to walk willingly into a global financial storm. So when Brazilian agrimogul Rubens Ometto went ahead this past Thursday with the initial public offering of his giant ethanol company, Cosan, on the New York Stock Exchange, a few financial critics understandably scratched their heads. After all, Banco Itaú, one of Latin America's hottest properties, took one look at the crumbling bourses of August and summarily canceled its own long awaited public offering, scheduled for the same day. But when the trading floor fell quiet, Ometto's empire was not only intact, but it was $1 billion richer. Cosan closed its first day at a respectable $10.50 a share, a bullish moment in a bear market.
A Sweeter Way to Go Green
How Brazil is transforming sugar cane into ethanol that it claims is a cleaner, cheaper and more sustainable source of fuel.
"In terms of technology, genetic engineering, climate and soil, Brazil has a monumental comparative advantage in ethanol." That may explain why in addition to Cosan, some 350 Brazilian companies are currently brewing ethanol from sugar cane with the number of producers set to rise to 412 by 2012.
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