Indonesia Plans Increase in Palm Oil-based Biodiesel In 2025

JAKARTA, July 24 (Reuters) – Indonesia, the world’s most significant palm oil producer, is evaluating fuel with a view to increasing to 40% from 35% the share of palm-oil blended into biodiesel next year, the energy ministry stated.

If carried out, the B40 required might increase biodiesel consumption to as much as 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 ended up in December, so that full application of B40 might be brought out in 2025,” energy ministry senior main Eniya Listiani Dewi stated in a statement on Tuesday.

The Indonesian Biofuel Producers Association (APROBI) stated the industry had the capacity to fulfill B40 need, with set up capability anticipated to rise to 20 million KL each year next year from 18 million KL now.

“However we will need more raw products to meet B40 need,” Ernest Gunawan, the secretary general of APROBI informed Reuters on Wednesday.

The biodiesel market would require 13.9 million metric loads of crude palm oil to produce 16 million KL biodiesel next year, from the estimated 11 million lots required this year, he included.

Indonesia’s greatest palm oil association GAPKI stated a decrease in exports implied there would be adequate raw products to provide the B40 required for now.

But the industry would need to evaluate “which one would be more valuable”, GAPKI chairman Eddy Martono stated, referring to the possibility an increase in exports would make supplying the domestic market less viable.

Indonesia’s palm oil output is estimated to reach 54.4 million tons in 2024, a 2.26% increase from in 2015, while exports are anticipated to by 2.47% to 29.5 million loads as domestic usage rose, driven by biodiesel mandate.

The ministry had tested the biodiesel, combined with 40% of palm oil, on a train for the very first time earlier today, while preparing to check the B40 mix on agriculture equipment, power plants and in the shipping industry, it stated. (Reporting by Bernadette Christina and Dewi Kurniawati; Writing by Stanley Widianto; Editing by John Mair, Savio D’Souza and Barbara Lewis)