Steve Case backs Brazilian ethanol venture

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- AOL founder Steve Case, supermarket magnate Ron Burkle and venture capitalist Vinod Khosla are investing in a company that could produce up to 1 billion gallons of ethanol a year in Brazil, according to a report Thursday.

Brazilian Renewable Energy Company closed an initial $200 million round of funding this week, according to The Wall Street Journal. The deal is expected to be officially announced Thursday, according to the newspaper.

The company, known as Brenco, will be based in Bermuda and run by Philippe Reichstul, ex-chief executive of Brazil's state oil company, Petrobras, the Journal reported.

Brazil produces about five billion gallons of ethanol a year using sugar cane, which is less costly than the corn used to produce ethanol in the United States, according to the report. The fuel has grown more important in recent years as concerns about energy demand and global climate change has made alternative fuels such as ethanol, solar, and wind energy more attractive to investors.

Another company cashing in on the boom in alternative energy is California-based Ameron International (Charts). Big companies GE (Charts), BP (Charts), DuPont (Charts), and Archer-Daniels-Midland (Charts) are players in the sector too.

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