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fter completing a six-month study on the use of B20 biodiesel on train locomotives, the government concluded that the B20 fuel — a blend of 20 percent of biofuel with diesel — can be used in diesel-fueled train engines.

The rail test, which involved at least 11 stakeholders from the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry and two train engine manufacturers, voided previous findings that B20 caused damage to or hindered the performance of the engines.

The ministry’s director general for renewable energy, Rida Mulyana, said in his closing speech for the six-month study that the result was “more than just okay” and should put an end to the unnecessary debate that B20 is incompatible with train engines.

“The result was more than okay in terms of fuel quality, engine performance and its effect on [the engine],” he said on Thursday.

The six-month rail test started in February and ended in August and used the railway from Tanjung Enim Station in South Sumatra to Tarahan Station in Lampung with a length of around 800 kilometers.

The study tested four locomotives, two of which use pure diesel, branded Solar, and the other two used B20 fuel. Each of the trains, belonging to state railway company PT KAI, travelled more than 50,000 km during the six months period with more than 3,900 hours of operation.

In a nutshell, the study concluded that diesel-fueled trains, which were used to carry coal, that used B20 more or less operated normally or similarly to the trains that used Solar.

The Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT), which was also involved in the study, added that when using B20, the train will emit 20 to 30 percent less carbon dioxide nd fuel consumption would increase by no more than 3 percent, said the agency researcher M. Taufik Suryantoro.

However, extra maintenance work will have to be carried out by KAI, which will have to double-check the quality of the B20 supply and more frequently clean the fuel tank before using B20. The ministry’s bioenergy director Andriah Feby Misna said it was “merely an extra measure to ensure that the biofuel is not contaminated”.

In 2016, the government ordered PT KAI to start using B20 for its locomotive engines. However, previous findings that the blended fuel had a negative impact on the engine forced the delays. In addition, the government also carried out a comprehensive study.

PT KAI director of operations Slamet Suseno Priyanto said there were findings that B20 caused several issues for the train engines. Yet, as the rail test ended with a positive result, KAI is upbeat on implementing the policy, which was enforced by the government on Sept. 1, with the aim of reducing oil imports and helping to lift the pressure on crude palm oil (CPO) prices.

“Some of the efforts to ensure our engines work properly is adjusting the settings, just like when people adjust their car’s engine after altering their choice of fuel from Premium to Pertamax,” Slamet said, referring to the type of gasolines sold by state energy holding company Pertamina.

Since Sept. 1, the company had been using B20 for all of its 485 locomotives. Next year the firm is set to receive 19 new locomotives.

KAI currently contributes around 1.5 percent of national consumption of Fatty Acid Methyl Ester (FAME), or the raw material of biosolar from CPO. This year’s allocation for the B20 policy stood at 3.91 million kiloliters.