Indonesia mandates all biodiesel users to switch to B50 by 2028
08/04/2026 (Reuters), Jakarta - Indonesia's Energy Ministry has issued a ministerial decree setting the timeline for the implementation of its biofuel blending mandate, an official said on Wednesday, as it tries meet its energy transition and self-sufficiency targets.
It said that by 2028, all biodiesel users will shift to the B50 standard, which includes 50% palm oil-based fuel.
Indonesia, the world's largest palm oil producer, originally planned to implement a mandatory blend of "at least" 40% palm-based biodiesel blended with 60% conventional diesel in 2026, according to the decree, which was signed on March 3.
Indonesia has since said it will launch a programme to raise the mandatory blending rate for palm-based biodiesel from 40% to 50%, a standard known as B50, starting from July 1.
The early implementation of B50 was part of a wider government plan to mitigate risks arising from the Iran war.
Indonesia plans to keep the palm oil blending rate at 50% for subsidised diesel in 2027, but unsubsidised diesel could stay at 40%, depending on the capacity available. B50 will be the standard for all users by 2028, the decree said.
"Through more comprehensive regulations and clear phasing, we want to ensure that biofuel utilisation can be implemented optimally, while still considering the readiness of raw materials, infrastructure, and industrial support," said director general of renewable energy Eniya Listiani Dewi in a statement on Wednesday.
The Energy Ministry will issue a new ministerial decree to allocate the biodiesel required to meet the B50 goal in the second half of this year, Eniya said. It had previously allocated 15.65 million kilolitres for 2026 to meet the B40 standard.
Indonesia also plans to mix non-subsidised gasoline with at least 5% ethanol in Java, the country's most populated island, over the 2026-2027 period, and raise the proportion to 10% by 2028.
Southeast Asia's largest economy, Indonesia, is also planning to roll out a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) mandate starting from 2027.
From next year, flights operating in Jakarta's Soekarno Hatta International Airport and Bali's I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport, two of Indonesia's busiest airports, will use fuel consisting of 1% SAF.