Indonesia plans to step up the processing of palm oil waste into biogas
In Ukraine, UkrAgroConsult reported that Indonesia has the potential to produce up to 3.6 billion cubic meters of biogas annually from palm oil processing waste. The country’s palm oil mills generate around 125 million tons of POME each year, a large share of which remains an underutilized energy resource.
According to the Palm Oil Agribusiness Strategic Policy Institute (PASPI), one ton of POME can produce around 28.8 cubic meters of biogas through methane capture. However, Indonesia currently utilizes no more than 15% of this potential, according to the report.
The scale of the available feedstock reflects the size of Indonesia’s palm oil industry. Oil palm plantations cover around 16.8 million hectares and produce approximately 250 million tons of fresh fruit bunches annually, the report added.
To accelerate development of the sector, PASPI proposes mandatory methane capture at palm oil mills, carbon trading mechanisms for such projects and requirements for blending biogas with fossil fuels. These measures could turn huge volumes of palm oil industry waste into a new energy source and create additional value from the sector’s by-products.
Category: Food & Agriculture
