Indonesia commences testing to prepare “B50” palm oil biodiesel mandate
11/08/2024 (VNA), Jakarta - Indonesia is conducting tests as it prepares for the incoming government’s plan to increase the palm oil-based biodiesel blending mandate to 50%, up from the current 35%.
Currently, under its ‘B35’ programme, Indonesia has one of the highest biofuel blend mandates globally. The outgoing government of President Joko Widodo had planned to increase this to B40 next year.
Prabowo Subianto, who will succeed Widodo in October after winning the February election, has promised to increase the mandate further to B50 to reduce oil imports, although no timeline has been set.
A static test for B50 composition is being conducted by the energy ministry and several stakeholders, said Eniya Listiani Dewi, Director General of Renewable Energy at the energy ministry. This will be followed by vehicle road tests, a process that usually takes about a year. The agriculture ministry is also evaluating palm oil supplies.
Under the B35 mandate, 11 million metric tonnes of crude palm oil (CPO) will be used this year, increasing to 14 million tonnes under B40. The B50 mandate would require approximately 18 million tonnes of CPO, which could impact domestic cooking oil prices, exports, and government revenue from exports.