Indonesia government to create a mechanism for rollout of B35 biodiesel policy

INDONESIA’S president has asked the government to create a mechanism next year to ensure the rollout of B35 biodiesel, a senior minister said on Tuesday (Dec 6).

B35 is a fuel containing a 35 per cent mix of palm oil-based fuel.

Indonesia, the world’s top palm oil producer, currently has a mandatory 30 per cent mix of palm oil fuel in biodiesel, known as B30.

“With the implementation of B35, it will reduce our dependency on (oil) imports,” Chief Economics Minister Airlangga Hartarto said.

He did not provide further detail on plans for B35 implementation or give any timetable.

South-east Asia’s biggest economy is currently finalising trials on biodiesel containing 40 per cent palm oil-based fuel known as B40.

Speaking after a Cabinet meeting, Airlangga also said that the government expects headline inflation at the end of 2022 to be between 5.34 per cent and 5.5 per cent.

Indonesia’s annual headline inflation last month eased to 5.42 per cent from 5.71 per cent in October.

“We will monitor the global geopolitical environment, extreme weather and the scarring effects on inflation,” Airlangga said. REUTERS