Even With Rising Gas Prices, This Fuel Remains More Advantageous Compared to Ethanol. Check If It’s More Beneficial to Fill Up With Ethanol or Gasoline in Your State

Filling Up With Ethanol Brings Advantages Over Gasoline Only When The Price At The Pumps Represents 70% Of The Price Of This Fuel. Last Month, It Was Found That It Was Only Advantageous To Fill Up With Alcohol In 4 States

Due to the rise in gasoline prices, filling up with alcohol has increased. However, it remains more advantageous to fill up with gasoline in most states. According to ANP, filling the car’s tank with ethanol last month was only worthwhile in São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso, and Goiás.

The advantage of alcohol is calculated considering that alcohol has about 70% of the calorific value of gasoline. Thus, to determine if ethanol is more advantageous than gasoline, just multiply the price per liter of gasoline by 0.7. If the result is lower than the price per liter of ethanol, it means that filling up with gasoline will be more advantageous. Otherwise, ethanol will be the better option.

At the end of last month, the average price of gasoline was more competitive than that of ethanol in 22 states and the Federal District, with only São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso, and Goiás being exceptions.

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According to G1, in São Paulo, the state that produces and consumes the most fuels, the price per liter of ethanol was equivalent to 68.34% of the average gasoline price. In Rio de Janeiro, the average price of ethanol corresponded to 76.88% of the price of gasoline.

The price of a liter of alcohol represented 68.7% of the gasoline price on average across more than 4,000 gas stations surveyed by the ANP throughout Brazil. This indicates that ethanol has a slight advantage. It is important to remember that this ratio varies among gas stations and cities.

Increase in Ethanol Sales

According to the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association (Unica), ethanol sales increased by 17.33% in the first half of March compared to the second half of February. It is estimated that the price of ethanol may decline in the coming months due to the new sugarcane harvest, which started this month.

According to the National Broad Consumer Price Index 15 (IPCA-15), which shows a preview of the country’s official inflation, gasoline has accumulated a 27.68% increase over 1 year, while ethanol has recorded a 24.27% increase.

Last month, fuel prices increased at gas stations in Brazil following a stringent adjustment announced by Petrobras in March.

It is worth noting that the price of gasoline for consumers also depends on the exchange rate and the oil price, as since 2016 Petrobras has adopted the so-called international parity, passing on international oil price increases to the values charged in its refineries.

The price of alcohol also has effects on gasoline prices, as it is mandatory for this fuel to contain 27% of anhydrous ethanol in the gasoline sold at gas stations.

How To Calculate Whether It Is More Advantageous To Fill Up With Alcohol Or Gasoline

To identify which fuel is more worthwhile at the pump, the driver should multiply the price per liter of gasoline by 0.7. If the result is lower than the price per liter of alcohol, it is better to fill up with gasoline. Otherwise, ethanol is the better option.

Thus:

• Multiply the price per liter of gasoline by 0.7;
• If the result is less than the price of a liter of ethanol: gasoline is more advantageous;
• If the result is greater than the price of a liter of ethanol: alcohol is the better option.