18/10/2012 (Jakarta Post) - Plantation company PT Astra Agro Lestari (AALI), part of diversified conglomerate PT Astra International (ASII), saw its crude palm oil (CPO) production grow by 11.2 percent to 1.03 million tons in the third quarter of this year from the same period last year. In September alone, the publicly listed company reported that its CPO production reached the highest level so far this year with 147,890 tons.

Astra Agro’s kernel production also increased to 227,942 tons in the third quarter of 2012, 16.6 percent higher from a year before. The company harvested as many as 3.95 million tons of fresh fruit bunches (FFB) during the period nine months, up 11.7 percent from the same period last year.

Sumatra remained the major contributor of the total FFB harvest with 42.6 percent or 1.68 million tons. Meanwhile, Kalimantan and Sulawesi made up for 39.4 percent and 18 percent of the total figure, respectively.

Even though Sumatra continued to dominate the total FFB harvest figure, the company reported that Kalimantan recorded the highest growth in the third quarter, surging 20 percent to 1.56 million tons from 2011.

The prices of CPO have fallen due to slowing demand from Europe and China combined with high stockpiles in the two largest exporters of palm oil, Indonesia and Malaysia.