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B40 biodiesel plan delayed again on high CPO prices
The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry said it would "prioritize stability" amid rising crude palm oil (CPO) prices.
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A gas station worker in Bintuni, West Papua, serves customers in this undated photograph. The government is promoting biofuels such as B30 biodiesel to reduce the country's dependence on fossil fuels. (JP/Jerry Adiguna)
T
he Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry will delay the implementation of a mandatory 40 percent palm oil-based biodiesel (B40) policy this year to "prioritize stability" amid rising crude palm oil (CPO) prices.
Energy Minister Arifin Tasrif said on Thursday that the government would continue its B30 policy – of 30 percent palm oil-based biodiesel – this year and would devise solutions to maintain the price gap between CPO and biodiesel prices.
“Technically, B40 is ready to be implemented. We are reviewing whether we’re ready to produce more CPO,” Arifin told reporters in Yogyakarta.
The B40 biodiesel program was slated for implementation in July 2021 following the success of the B30 program in 2019, but it was delayed by a year as high CPO prices had made the fuel uneconomical. The ministry had planned to conduct a five-month B40 trial starting in February of this year.
Read also: High palm oil price delays Indonesia’s B40 biodiesel plan
Arifin claimed the government was still committed to escalating the biodiesel policy.
As of Monday, CPO prices had risen 27.5 percent since the beginning of the year to reach 6,578 Malaysian ringgit (US$1,559) per ton.
