The An Khe ethanol plant project received in-principle approval from provincial authorities on Monday, with Quang Ngai Sugar as the investor.

The project is expected to help the company extract more value from sugarcane while positioning it to meet growing demand for biofuels in Vietnam.

Under the in-principle approval, the project will cover more than 8 hectares in An Khe ward and produce fuel ethanol, food-grade alcohol, electricity, liquid CO2, dry yeast, and fusel oil.

Once completed, the plant will have a designed capacity of 200,000 liters of ethanol a day, 21 million liters of alcohol a year, 90 metric tons of liquid CO2 a day, 11.2 metric tons of dry yeast a day and 0.5 metric tons of fusel oil a day, as well as 7 megawatts of electricity generation capacity.

Under the approved schedule, QNS expects to complete investment procedures in the fourth quarter of 2026, begin construction in the first quarter of 2027 and complete and commission the plant in the third quarter of 2028. The project will have an operating term of 50 years.

To implement the project, QNS will have to complete a range of procedures related to investment deposits, land, forestry, construction, environmental protection, technology, fire prevention and firefighting, and occupational safety.

Gia Lai province also requires the company to prepare an application for an environmental permit, including a comprehensive assessment of environmental issues that could arise if all of its sugar, power and ethanol plants operate simultaneously, as well as details of planned new environmental protection measures and facilities.

At its 2026 annual general meeting of shareholders, QNS leadership said Vietnam's gasoline consumption is currently about 25 million tons a year. The market is using E5 gasoline and has a roadmap to shift to E10. From January 1, 2028, Vietnam will require the use of E10 gasoline and stop the circulation of A95 gasoline, creating significant demand for fuel ethanol.

Investing in the ethanol project will not only allow QNS to make greater use of molasses, a byproduct of sugar production, but also give it greater flexibility to adjust between sugar and ethanol production depending on market conditions.

Under QNS's development strategy, the sugarcane-growing area in Gia Lai is expected to expand to about 40,000 hectares in the coming period to support sugar processing.

At that scale, molasses production from sugar processing is estimated at about 170,000 tons a year, equivalent to the potential production of about 44.85 million liters of ethanol annually.

The Central-Central Highlands region is also home to several sugar mills, including Ayun Pa Gia Lai, KCP Vietnam, Tuy Hoa, Kon Tum, 333 Dak Lak, Dak Nong and Phan Rang.

Adding another link to sugarcane-sugar-power chain

QNS, based in the central province of Quang Ngai, was equitized from a state-owned enterprise under a 2005 decision by the then Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. The company began trading on the Unlisted Public Company Market (UPCoM) in late 2016 and has charter capital of about VND3.68 trillion ($141.47 million).

The investment in the An Khe ethanol plant is the next step in QNS's strategy to develop a value chain around sugarcane while expanding into biofuels and the circular economy.

QNS's An Khe Sugar Mill currently has a sugarcane processing line with capacity of 18,000 tons a day, which is being expanded to 25,000 tons, along with a refined sugar production line with capacity of 1,000 tons a day. It is Vietnam's largest sugarcane-processing plant by scale and accounts for more than 20% of the country's processed sugar output.

At the same time, the company is expanding the An Khe biomass power plant from 95 MW to 135 MW. The project is the country's largest bagasse-fired biomass power project, supporting Vietnam's goals for energy efficiency and green economic development.

In addition to sugar and energy, QNS owns several major brands, including Vinasoy, Thach Bich mineral water, Biscafun and Dung Quat Beer, with modern factories and automated production processes.

According to its interim consolidated financial statements, QNS reported net revenue of more than VND6.05 trillion ($232.92 million) in the first half of 2026, up 16.6% from a year earlier. Its after-tax profit reached more than VND957.5 billion ($36.85 million), up 2.1%.

As of June 30, QNS had total assets of more than VND15.84 trillion ($609.78 million), up 10.4% from the beginning of the year. Current assets accounted for the majority, at more than VND12.69 trillion.

Total liabilities stood at nearly VND5.2 trillion ($199.98 million), mainly consisting of short-term liabilities of more than VND5.04 trillion. Short-term borrowings and finance lease liabilities amounted to more than VND3.79 trillion.

QNS shares closed at VND52,200 ($2) each on Tuesday.