COLOMBIAN LEADING EFFORT TO BUILD FLORIDA'S FIRST ETHANOL PLANT

El Pais.com.co

Bolivar emphasized that ethanol is an economic alternative to gasoline, given that consumers.

Colombian William Bolivar, the president of Bolivar Biofuels, will be in charge of building Florida's first ethanol plant.

'We have a working team of 25 experts in the ethanol industry and we're working hard on the construction of the first plant to produce and distribute ethanol in Florida,' the businessman told Efe.

Bolivar recently traveled with Florida Gov. Charlie Crist to a business convention, where he was able to nail down the ambitious $125 million project with Brazilian firm Ethanol Far.

Presently, experts are analyzing where to build the plant, which should be ready to begin operating in two years. Two of the possibilities are in the area near Lake Okeechobee or near the town of Crestview, which is in the Florida Panhandle near Pensacola.

'We're doing the feasibility studies of the terrain and evaluating the conditions to set up the plant,' he added.

Bolivar emphasized that ethanol is an economic alternative to gasoline, given that consumers will pay about $2 per gallon for ethanol instead of the $3 per gallon average price for gasoline nationwide at this time.

'In Brazil, eight out of every 10 cars use ethanol because it's very cheap and the same thing can happen here,' he said.

Bolivar believes that Florida can be an ethanol leader in this country.

'We're very well located geographically. It could be a sector for employment that would add to the tourism sector (in terms of revenue for Florida), and we could be a powerhouse' for ethanol,' said Bolivar, who has worked as a journalist, news director and businessman in several projects over the years in Colombia and the United States.

He runs his firm - information on which can be accessed at www.bolivarbiofuels.com and which was founded three years ago and has offices in Orlando - with his brother and other partners.

'Out of curiosity, I became interested in ethanol production. I got involved in the subject and that's how this passion for the industry arose. Basically, I'm a country guy and I have great enthusiasm for this,' he said.

As a businessman and news director at the La Mega station, Bolivar earned the respect of the Hispanic community in Central Florida.

His company cooperates with different biofuel studies at universities around the country and currently they are on the verge of releasing a 10-year study about ethanol that will revolutionize the industry.

'We have the patent for the study. It will be something very key for this sector that promises a great future,' he said.

In addition, his firm is currently in negotiations regarding the installation of ethanol plants in Colombia and Mexico.