The government will fully mandate the use of B5 (a blend of five per cent palm oil biodiesel and 95 per cent petroleum diesel) nationwide on July 1.
Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Douglas Uggah Embas said on that day, all 3,877 petrol stations in the country will be selling B5, adding national palm oil biodiesel consumption is expected to rise to 500,000 tonnes a year.
The B5 programme, implemented in the Central Region encompassing Putrajaya, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Kuala Lumpur and Selangor on June 1, 2011, was expanded to the Southern Region covering Johor on July 22 last year.
Annual consumption of palm oil biodiesel in the two regions’ 1,565 petrol kiosks is 150,000 tonnes.
“The programme was later extended to the Eastern Region comprising Pahang, Terengganu and Kelantan in February, raising annual consumption of palm oil biodiesel by 34,938 tonnes and reducing annual diesel consumption by 40.4 million litres,” he said.
Speaking to reporters at the launch of palm oil biodiesel in the Eastern and Northern Regions and in Peninsular Malaysia by Pahang Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Adnan Yaakob here today, he said all 789 petrol stations in the Northern Region covering Perak, Kedah, Perlis and Penang will implement the mandate this month.
“The final phase of the B5 programme will be implemented in Sabah, Sarawak and Federal Territory of Labuan in July,” he said.
In his speech, he said 175,032 tonnes of biodiesel valued at RM502.61 million were exported last year, a sharp rise from 28,983 tonnes worth RM98.44 million the preceding year, with the main markets being the European Union and China.
The government will mandate the use of B7 (a blend of seven per cent palm oil biodiesel and 93 per cent petroleum diesel) by January 2015, and is getting feedback from interested parties including Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA), Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA), vehicle manufacturers, SIRIM Technical Committe and Malaysian Biodiesel Associatioan (MBA), he added.
