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| Agro industry |
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Biodiesel production from palm oil growing
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MALAYSIA’S golden crop,
palm oil, has become a household name around the
world while establishing itself as a major industry
that is growing by the day. This year is expected
to be a boom year for industry players. Palm oil
has been a star performer in 2006, buoyed by the
bright future for biofuels or biodiesels which
Malaysia is aggressively pursuing.
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Tan Sri Datuk Dr. Yusof Basiron
CEO, Malaysian Palm Oil Council
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Biodiesel produced from palm
oil has already been exported overseas and the
new industry is expected to have a big impact
on the national economy, says Tan Sri Datuk Dr.
Yusof Basiron, CEO of Malaysian Palm Oil Council
(MPOC).
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The Malaysian palm oil industry invests
more than RM400 million on research and development
annually. Reasearch on biodiesel fuel has been going
on since 1980s. The increase in crude oil prices has
made this alternative source of energy a strong reality
and commercially sustainable, Yusof said in an interview
with Khaleej Times.
Malaysia expects a phenomenal growth in biodiesel production
and exports this year to meet demand from countries
racing to cut greenhouse gas emissions. The European
countries and the U.S. have already shown keen interest
in the biodiesel and its commercial use, the CEO said.
Malaysian Palm Oil Board has been successful in developing
the technology to build biodiesel plants and was in
the process of building three such plants – each
with a capacity of 60,000 tonnes per year. The first
plant has already been completed and is now operating.
Two of the plants are in Port Klang and the third one
is located in Pasir Gudang, Johor.
The MPOC plays a supportive role to promote the concept
because the ‘fuel for the future’ will ultimately
boost business and help stabilise the palm oil market,
Yusof said. It is also involved in the promotional and
marketing activities of the country’s palm oil
in an effort to make it the leading oil in the global
oils and fats market. It is a pioneering body which has been driving the development of palm oil in Malaysia and carrying forward the massage across the globe for the benefit of the global trade.
Last year nearly 80 licences were issued to produce
the biofuel and the five operating plants, including
two private sector could produce about 300,000 tonnes
of fuel annually using refined palm oil as the basic
raw material. Globally, 600,000 tonnes of crude palm
oil were used for biodiesel production in 2005 and this
is expected to grow to one million tonnes this year.
The palm oil industry is one of the Malaysia’s
greatest success stories and will remain so as long
as it keeps pace with the latest technological advancements
in oils and fats.
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Yusof said palm oil is a healthy substitute
to vegetable oil and can be used freely in all households
as a good cooking medium. Its usage as edible oil in
food applications will still get priority, he said.
Besides biofuel, demand is also growing in the US for
palm oil as an edible oil amidst heightened awareness
of transfats, which are linked to coronary heart disease
and not found in palm oil.
Meanwhile, three of the country’s leading plantation
firms have merged to form the largest palm oil conglomerate
in the world. Welcoming the merger, Yusof said: “The
conglomerate will help in increasing the productivity
and efficiency and provide a greater market access worldwide.
This would lead to cutting down costs and also ensure
that we remain globally competitive.”
Malaysia wants to develop a stronger market in the Middle
East as export is growing at the rate of 5 per cent
every year. Palm oil is an essential commodity and it
is widely used in the GCC countries including the UAE
as a regular food product. With the rise in population
and the sophisticated transport and supply system, the
region is targeted as a major growth area this year.
According to Yusof, International Palm Oil Trade Fair
and Seminar (POTS) held in Kuala Lumpur from November
21 to 24 last year was a successful effort to bring
buyers and sellers under one umbrella to discuss contentious
issues pertaining to palm oil development worldwide.
The seminar, first of its kind, was an opportunity for
traders to explore the scope of palm industry and expand
it into a global business. The event brought together
the oils and fats marketers, snack food manufacturers,
fast food operators, traders, economists and officials.
The traders discussed import-export issues, new ventures
to enhance business, and the latest trends and opportunities
in the snack food industry which are poised to influence
the palm oil businesses globally. “The palm oil
byproduct could give birth to a huge snack product business
which has a potential of $70 billion market,”
Yusof said.
When asked about the message from POTS to the palm oil
industry, Yusof said: “We intend to enhance the
business linkages by developing applications beneficial
to palm industry.”
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| By Abdul Haque
Chowdhury |
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