We hope that the areas where the projects are implemented will become independent in energy by using palm oil as raw material for fuel.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Arifin Tasrif has said that his ministry is currently preparing a strategic plan for developing Biodiesel 40 (B40), which contains 40 percent biofuel and 60 percent diesel.

"Several strategies are being carried out to develop biodiesel; for instance, the development of green diesel through the co-processing method in the Dumai Refinery Unit II of state-owned oil and gas company Pertamina in 2022," he said at a webinar monitored here on Tuesday.

The company will also build two standalone bio-refineries in Cilacap District, Central Java Province, by 2022 and Plaju Sub-district, Palembang City, South Sumatra Province by 2024, he noted.

The two refineries will produce green diesel and green aviation turbine fuel (avtur) using just vegetable oil as raw material, he said.

In addition, the ministry will develop palm-based green gasoline under the People's Palm Oil Project, which will involve smallholders and cooperatives in Musi Banyuasin District, he added.

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“Currently, a pilot project is being prepared and will be demonstrated in Bandung, West Java. We hope that the areas where the projects are implemented will become independent in energy by using palm oil as raw material for fuel,” the minister remarked.

The government has made the use of B30—a green fuel comprising 30 percent of biofuel and 70 percent of diesel—mandatory to stop fuel imports by 2027, he informed.

This will allow Indonesia to save foreign exchange and improve the welfare of farmers through the mandatory use of biofuels, Tasrif said.

Furthermore, Indonesia has successfully used biofuel for 15 years, making the country a pioneer in using biodiesel with a blending rate of 30 percent, he added.

In October 2021, the government successfully conducted the inaugural flight of the CN 235-220 Flying Test Bed (FTB) between Bandung and Jakarta using bioavtur.

“Apparently, the result is quite well, thus we must be able to improve bioavtur—we will see whether it will be able to enter the international market or not," Tasrif added.

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Translator: Baqir Alatas, Uyu Liman
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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