God is Brazilian: Turning Alcohol Into Fuel

In September 1979, while Brazil is treading the uncertain and dangerous waters of an oil crisis that has exacerbated the country's balance of payment, Mario Garnero, the president of the National Association of Automotive Vehicle Manufacturers (ANFAVEA), is desperately looking for an escape to avoid the imminent threat of gasoline rationing and to contain the oil dependency of his country. The idea of developing a local ethanol industry and to produce vehicles that run exclusively on ethanol takes shape step by step, between the different reactions, interests and concerns of five actors: the automakers, the sugar producers, the state owned petrol company, the Government and most importantly the Brazilian customers. This case provides the background for a debate on what were the reasons behind the decision of the government to embark on the ethanol plan, on what were the concerns of the main stakeholders and on how the government should address the requests and the conditions of each of them, in order to implement the right set of measures for the plan effectively takes off and for Brazil to emerge from the crisis and to end its long and painful external oil dependency. The case is a fictional story, although mainly inspired by the real facts, from the perspective of our main character, Mario Garnero, considered the "Father of the Ethanol Car in Brazil".