The great potential for ethanol production in Brazil comes from its highlighted sugarcane culture, mainly in its Center-South region where the state of Sao Paulo is located. Also a consistent highway network, complemented by rail and river transport, enables an easy distribution of the production. These factors can be associated to obtain a better cost-benefit relationship related to installation of sugar and ethanol mills for ethanol production. Thus, studies focused on network location-allocation problems for facilities and customers location-allocation around cultivated areas, considering the particular characteristics of the sugarcane crops fields and industry, is proving very useful, given its direct impact on return on investment, as the price of the final product [1].
These studies are also important because some facilities were installed based on Government subsidies. When the Brazilian Government withdrew such subsidies those facilities faced serious problems. Despite an optimistic forecast of 3% growth in the supply of raw material in the Center-South region, it is estimated that others 12 plants cease activities in the 2015/2016 harvest season [2]. From 2008 to 2014, thereabout 80 mills closed activities [3].