Indonesia Plans Increase in Palm Oil-based Biodiesel In 2025
JAKARTA, July 24 (Reuters) - Indonesia, the world's greatest palm oil manufacturer, is evaluating fuel with a view to increasing to 40% from 35% the share of palm-oil combined into biodiesel next year, the energy ministry said.
If carried out, the B40 required could increase biodiesel usage to up to 16 million kilolitres (KL) next year, the ministry said, from 13 million KL approximated to be consumed in 2024.
"We hope the trials could be finished in December, so that complete execution of B40 might be brought out in 2025," energy ministry senior official Eniya Listiani Dewi said in a declaration on Tuesday.
The Indonesian Biofuel Producers Association (APROBI) stated the market had the capacity to fulfill B40 demand, with installed capacity expected to rise to 20 million KL each year next year from 18 million KL now.
"However we will need more basic materials to fulfill B40 demand," Ernest Gunawan, the secretary general of APROBI informed Reuters on Wednesday.
The biodiesel market would require 13.9 million metric lots of crude palm oil to produce 16 million KL biodiesel next year, from the estimated 11 million heaps needed this year, he added.
Indonesia's greatest palm oil association GAPKI stated a decrease in exports meant there would suffice basic materials to provide the B40 mandate for now.
But the industry would to examine "which one would be more valuable", GAPKI chairman Eddy Martono stated, describing the possibility a boost in exports would make providing the domestic market less viable.
Indonesia's palm oil output is estimated to reach 54.4 million loads in 2024, a 2.26% boost from last year, while exports are anticipated to decline by 2.47% to 29.5 million loads as domestic usage increased, driven by biodiesel required.
The ministry had tested the biodiesel, combined with 40% of palm oil, on a train for the very first time earlier today, while planning to test the B40 mix on farming machinery, power plants and in the shipping industry, it said. (Reporting by Bernadette Christina and Dewi Kurniawati; Writing by Stanley Widianto; Editing by John Mair, Savio D'Souza and Barbara Lewis)
