KUALA LUMPUR, JUNE 23 — The government will assess and study the suitability of implementing B50 biodiesel following the need to comprehensively upgrade existing blending depots which is expected to involve high costs, according to the Plantations and Commodities Ministry.
According to the ministry, in assessing the country’s ability to support the expansion of biodiesel use, palm oil supply balance data for 2025 is used as a reference.
“Data shows that Malaysia has a strong supply base and total palm oil supply is estimated to reach 22.76 million tonnes, comprising initial stocks of 1.71 million tonnes, production (20.28 million tonnes) and imports (0.77 million tonnes).
“Of the total supply, 15.27 million tonnes is allocated to meet global export demand while 4.43 million tonnes is used to meet domestic needs across various economic sectors including the biodiesel sector,” he said in a written response released on the Parliament website on Monday.
Based on the supply situation, the expansion of biodiesel implementation to B30 is not expected to affect the country’s palm oil export supply.
“This is because the palm oil consumption required to support the implementation of B30 is estimated to be only about 1.60 million tonnes per year, which is equivalent to about 7.0 percent of the country’s entire palm oil supply,” he said.
According to the ministry, the percentage is relatively small compared to the total supply available, proving that the country still has sufficient capacity to meet the needs of the export market and domestic consumption simultaneously.
“Therefore, the expansion of biodiesel use can be implemented without affecting the country’s ability to meet palm oil export demand,” he said.
Currently, the government’s long-term plan to increase the use of biodiesel is up to B30 and it has been stated in the National Agri-Commodity Policy.
It is supported by other policies such as the National Transport Policy and the National Energy Transition Plan when the National Biodiesel Program will be expanded in phases throughout Malaysia to B30 by 2030 for the land transport sector.
— BERNAMA
