BINTULU: The implementation of the B10 and B7 biodiesel programmes for the transport and industrial sectors in Sarawak should be carried out seriously, said Primary Industries Minister Teresa Kok.
She said the state should be committed in implementing the programmes as doing so would enhance the use of palm oil in the country and further increase the price of the commodity to a better level in the future.
“Several Sarawakians drive lorries and four-wheel drive vehicles that are using diesel and we hope that with the use of B10 for transport and B7 for the industries, this will increase the use of palm oil in the country, especially in the state,” she said.
She was speaking to reporters after the launching of the B7 programme and seminar for the industrial sector at the Bintulu Port Authority Auditorium here today.
She added that in order to strengthen foreign countries’ confidence in palm oil products, the consumption of the commodity should first be promoted among the people of this country.
The industry, she said, needed to have confidence in B7 biodiesel and use it in their operations.
She then cited Indonesia as an example, saying the country had the B20 programme for the subsidised sector since January 2016 and expanded it to the industrial sector from October last year.
“To date, no technical problems have been reported and Indonesia is moving towards the use of B30 this year,” she said.
Implementation of the B10 biodiesel programme in the transport sector and B7 in the industrial sector is expected to consume some 760,000 tonnes of palm oil biodiesel per year.
The mandatory use of B10 biodiesel came into force in February while the B7 programme for the industrial sector would be implemented from next month. – Bernama
