20/05/2011 (The Star) - The Government is set to implement the B5 biodiesel programme next month starting with Putrajaya, Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Tan Sri Bernard Dompok said.

“The programme will be introduced in stages, starting from Putrajaya, before its full implementation at all petrol stations nationwide,” he told reporters yesterday after launching the Palm International Nutra-Cosmeceutical Conference.

He said the price mechanism for B5 biodiesel would be regulated and fixed by the Finance Ministry.

“The price will not burden the people and the Government will ensure that it will be affordable to everyone,” he added.

The Government introduced the B5 blend programme that involves the blending of 5% biodiesel with 95% fossil fuel, which is suitable for diesel engine vehicles and was initially scheduled for launch in January.

Last year, he said, palm oil products generated export revenue of nearly RM62bil, which represented an increase of 24.7% compared with RM49.7bil in 2009.

“In terms of volume, we exported 16.7 million tonnes of palm oil, 1.1 million tonnes of palm kernel oil, 2.4 million tonnes of palm kernel cake and 2.2 million tonnes of oleochemicals last year,” he added.

He said the country also needed to address sustainable aspects of palm oil production as well as take into account the continuous allegations of anti-palm oil lobbies.

Asked about the traded price of crude palm oil (CPO), Malaysian Palm Oil Council chairman Datuk Lee Yeow Chor expressed confidence that the price would remain strong.

“Although there has been a softening of commodity prices in the global market and unusual weather, we still see a growing demand of CPO from many countries,” he said.