NOVELTY - Recovery of water and energy from the processing of sugar cane in sugar and ethanol production mills, comprises: (a) submitting the sugar cane to a juice extraction operation; (b) treating and purifying the extracted juice; (c) treating the obtained sludge flow; (d) submitting part of the obtained clarified juice flow to a multiple effect vacuum evaporation unit; (e) concentrating the syrup; (f) centrifuging the crystallized product; (g) mixing the remaining clarified juice flow with the molasse flow; (h) maintaining the fermentation temperature; and (i) fermenting the cooled must.    USE - The process is useful in the recovery of water and energy from the processing of sugar cane in sugar and ethanol production mills, using the sugar cane straw and bagasse as energy source for an electric energy and steam generation unit for domestic or industrial consumption (claimed).    ADVANTAGE - The process: is economy for recovering energy and rationalization of water, in view of eliminating the water capture and generating hydric excess; reuses maximum recovery of the water; provides high generation of energy (electric and vapor) from renewable source, bagasse and straw; reuses maximum solid and liquid residues for the production of a granulated solid organo-mineral fertilizer, so as to reduce the consumption of non-renewable source (mainly petroleum); provides increased profitability of the sugar and alcohol industry complex, and less environmental problems associated with water and soil contamination; is a lower fossil fuel consumption; and provides the environment preservation, economic savings with water capture and waste disposition, and reduction of the transport fleet and equipment used for transport and distribution of vinasse, ashes and cake, with fertilizer purchase economy by re-circulating the solid rejects rich in nutrients (mainly potassium), and with a lower operational cost.    DETAILED DESCRIPTION - Recovery of water and energy from the processing of sugar cane in sugar and ethanol production mills, using the sugar cane straw and bagasse as energy source for an electric energy and steam generation unit, comprises: (a) submitting the sugar cane to a juice extraction operation with imbibition by condensates recovered from vegetal vapor; (b) treating and purifying the extracted juice, using vegetal vapor condensate, evaporation vegetal vapor and inputs, and producing a clarified juice flow, a sludge flow and a vegetal vapor condensate flow; (c) treating the sludge flow, producing a filter cake and a recovered juice flow which is returned to the step (b); (d) submitting part of the clarified juice flow to a multiple effect vacuum evaporation unit, under heating by exhausted steam from the energy generation unit, producing an exhausted steam condensate, to be at least in part returned to the energy generation unit, at least one evaporation vegetal vapor flow, a last effect vegetal vapor flow, a vegetal vapor condensate flow, and a syrup flow; (e) concentrating the syrup until the crystallization point of part of the sucrose contained in it under heating with at least part of the vegetal vapor flow produced in the evaporation unit, producing a crystallization vegetal vapor flow, a vegetal vapor condensate flow and a crystallized product flow (crystallized mass); (f) centrifuging the crystallized product, producing an end syrup (molasse) flow and a sugar flow to be dried and bagged; (g) mixing the remaining clarified juice flow with the molasse flow in proportions adequate to the fermentation, and cooling the resulting must by indirect thermal exchange, with at least one of the means defined by an extracted mixed juice flow and a vegetal vapor condensate water flow, at the wet-bulb temperature corresponding to the ambient temperature, circulating by a cooling tower unit; (h) maintaining the fermentation temperature at 25-36 degrees C, preferably at 30-32 degrees C, by indirect thermal exchange with the vegetal vapor condensate water flow circulating by a cooling tower unit; and (i) fermenting the cooled must, producing a wine flow, and distillating the wine to produce ethanol and vinasse, where the process is characterized in that: the extracted juice (mixed juice) is pre-heated in the cooling of the must and heated by regenerative indirect thermal exchange with at least one of the flows defined by last effect vegetal vapor of the evaporation unit and by the crystallization vegetal vapor, transforming the vapor flows in vegetal vapor condensate flows; the step of distillating the wine is carried out with the indirect heating of the wine by at least one of the means defined by part of the evaporation vegetal vapor flow, by part of the exhausted steam flow and by a vinasse vegetal vapor flow, producing an alcoholic vapor flow and at least one of the flows defined by vegetal vapor condensate and by exhausted steam; the alcoholic vapor flow is condensed by indirect thermal exchange with at least one of the flows defined by fermented wine and by vegetal vapor condensate water of the cooling tower unit; the vinasse is submitted to a multiple effect vinasse evaporation unit, under heating by evaporation vegetal vapor, producing at least one vinasse vegetal vapor flow, a last effect vinasse vegetal vapor flow, a vegetal vapor condensate flow and a concentrated vinasse flow; the wine, to be distillated, is pre-heated by indirect thermal exchange with at least one of the means defined the last effect vinasse vegetal vapor flow and by an alcoholic vapor flow from a distillation stage, producing a vegetal vapor condensate flow and an alcoholic condensate flow; and the excess of the vegetal vapor condensate flows which is not used in the process is sent, at least in part, to the cooling tower unit and, if it is still available, stored for posterior treatment.