Konzen Clean Energy Sdn Bhd (KCE) has been awarded a US$2.5 million (US$1=RM3.03) contract by Indonesia’s PT Paramitra Internusa Pratama to set up a biogas plant at its Belian Estate in West Kalimantan by July 2012.
KCE is a BioNexus-status firm facilitated by Malaysian Biotechnology Corp Sdn Bhd (BiotechCorp) while PT Paramitra is a unit of PT SMART Tbk Agribusiness & Food.
In a statement today, BiotechCorp’s chief executive officer, Datuk Dr Mohd Nazlee Kamal, said the initiative by KCE delivered on the agenda for Phase II of the National Biotechnology Policy commercialisation of biotechnology.
“It also reflects the maturity and strength of our local biotech firms and their competitiveness in embarking on strategic partnerships for the robust development of the industry,” he said.
Under the agreement, KCE will provide the design, supply, engineering, installation, commissioning and project management of the effluent treatment plant, complete with anaerobic digester tanks and state-of-the-art process control system of the biogas plant.
The plant will have sophisticated monitoring equipment that facilitates comprehensive data logging, useful for plant improvements and future research and development work under the ongoing developmental activities of KCE.
Biotechcorp said the technology transfer from KCE for the development of the biogas plant would therefore be relevant far beyond the project itself and would be appreciated by industry in the future.
It said as an alternative to fossil fuels, PT SMART planned to use biogas at this plant produced from its palm oil mill effluent to generate electricity for its palm oil mills, the statement said.
“The surplus supply of the electricity would be directed to the community,” it said.
