03/06/2009 (Palm Oil HQ) - Indonesian Palm Oil Producers Association (Gapki) chairman Joefly J Bachroeny predicts Indonesia`s crude palm oil (CPO) production will increase 5-10 percent as harvest time in the country will begin soon.

“CPO production in the January-April 2009 period reached 5 million tons. We hope the figure will increase 5-10 percent in the upcoming months as the grand harvest will happen soon,” he said at a discussion on the use of peat land for oil palm planting here on Wednesday.

He said the country`s CPO production in 2009 was projected to reach 20 million tons, of which 15.5 million to 16.5 million tons including biodiesel fuel would be exported.

In 2008, Indonesia produced 14.29 million tons of CPO, 33 percent of which was exported to India.

CPO exports in the first quarter of 2009 only reached 3.38 million tons as many importers cancelled contracts amidst the global economic slowdown.

The Central Statistics Board (BPS) said recently the country`s exports of CPO and derivatives in the year to end April grew 4.3 percent to 5.57 million tons from 5.34 million tons in the same period a year earlier.

By value Indonesia`s exports of CPO and derivatives in the first four months of 2009 plunged 44.6 percent to US$2.87 billion from US$5.19 billion in the same period last year.

Joefly predicted CPO exports in June 2009 would come under pressure following the government`s decision to impose 3 percent export tax on the commodity.

Accordingly, the price of fresh fruit bunch which currently stood at Rp1,400 a kg would also decline, he said.