Oil palm bio-diesel ready for sale
Oil palm bio-diesel ready for sale
Lao Agro Tech Company has now begun to sell the biodiesel it produces from oil palms to five companies after it started the production process four months ago.
The sales price is 7,700-8,050 kip per litre, which is cheaper than petrol by about 500-800 kip th e company confirmed.
In 2012, the company teamed up with the Institute of Renewable Energy and Promotion to build a demonstration plant capable of producing biodiesel from oil palms, under a memor andum of understanding signed in April 2012.
The palm oil processing plant was completed and able to produce quality biodiesel in February this year.
The plant has a biodiesel (B100) production capacity of 20,000 litres per day, which is enough to mix with 400,000 litres of B5 biodiesel.
After four months of processing, there are now many groups of small and large companies interested in this oil, the company Director, Mr Oudom Keothavong told local media recently.
To guarantee meeting customers demands, the company is growing palms on their own plantation area and working with Toyota Lao Service Company for farmer promotion.
The company is now growing about 100 hectares of oil palm trees in Xanakham district, Vientiane province and will encourage growers to increase the area under cultivation to about 1,000 hectares this year, said Mr Oudom.
Lao Agro Tech also plans to produce saplings and grow oil palm trees in Naxaithong and Pakgnum districts in Vientiane.
The company is aiming to expand its production area to 20,000 hectares over the next three to five years to supply the oil palm market, he said.
The world market is now wanting more and more oil palms, while the Chinese and Indian markets will require 100 million tonnes in 2015.
Over the next five years the company plans to invest US$5 million to establish a small palm oil processing factory in Meuangfeuang district, Vientiane province.
Lao Agro Tech have the potential to increase production capacity considerably in future years to contribute to the government's renewable energy strategy.
The government aims to have a biofuel content in all petrol by the year 2016 saying that Laos has the necessary botanical resources such as oil palms, vernicia and jatropha to produce the required amount.
Lao imports of fossil fuel are increasing by 5-8 percent each year as rapid economic growth drives up the demand for petrol and diesel.
The tentative vision is for the promotion and development of bio-fuel as a 10 percent substitute in transportation fuel by 2025, while stepping up the development of bio-fuel technology in rural areas.
In 2012, Laos imported about 800 million litres of fossil fuel at a cost of US$560 million, and 560 million litres in 2010.
vientiane times
