20/12/05 (The Star)  -  GOLDEN Hope Plantations Bhd plans to build its fourth, and possibly the largest, biodiesel plant in Sarawak, as it bids to be a leading producer of sustainable energy in the country.

GHope said in a statement yesterday the new plant in Bintulu would have an annual capacity of 150,000 tonnes and cater to markets in the region.

“We have identified a partner for this joint venture, and a feasibility study will be carried out soon,” chairman Tan Sri Ahmad Sarji Abdul Hamid said.

Sarji was speaking at the launch of Austral Edible Oil Sdn Bhd's RM49mil palm oil refinery and the laying of foundation for its kernel crushing plant by Sarawak Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Alfred Jabu in Bintulu. Austral Edible is a GHope subsidiary.

The plantation giant's three other biodiesel plants – two in Selangor and one in the Netherlands – would be fully operational by the end of next year.

“Our first biodiesel plant in Banting is expected to start production in July next year. It will have a production capacity of 30,000 tonnes of biodiesel a year,” Sarji said.

Sarawak deputy chief minister Tan Sri Alfred Jabu laying the foundation stone for the RM16.7 million kernel crushing plant of Austral Edible Oil Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of Golden Hope Plantations Berhad. Looking on (from left) are Golden Hope chairman Tan Sri Ahmad Sarji Abdul Hamid and Golden Hope Group Chief Executive Datuk Sabri Ahmad.  

The second biodiesel plant, which will be leased from Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), will have an annual production capacity of 60,000 tonnes. 

An agreement on this was signed between Rubiatec Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of GHope, and MPOB in Putrajaya last week.

Rubiatec will lease the plant for 20 years and be licensed to use MPOB's technology and know-how to produce palm biodiesel on a commercial scale.

Sarji said: “Golden Hope is confident that world demand for biodiesel will increase drastically due to the high price of petroleum and the reducing fossil fuel reserves.

“The approaching 2008–2012 deadlines for signatories of the Kyoto Protocol to reduce emission of greenhouse gases to the 1990 level will also increase demand for renewable energy.”

Meanwhile, Austral Edible's newly launched refinery was commissioned in October last year and began operation the following month.

The refinery, on an 8ha site, can process 1,000 tonnes of crude palm oil a day. Refined oil can be channelled straight to the Bintulu Port through a pipeline.

The RM16.7mil kernel crushing plant will have the capacity to process 400 tonnes of palm kernel a day.

“The construction of the plant makes good business sense for Golden Hope and Austral Edible, because palm kernel oil is now selling at RM2,030 per tonne compared with RM670 per tonne a few years ago due to the expansion of the oleochemicals industry in the world,” Sarji said.

He said the plant would supply crude palm kernel oil to Cognis Oleochemicals (M) Sdn Bhd, a 50:50 partnership between GHope and Cognis Deutschland GmbH & Co KG of Germany.