KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will begin producing biodiesel with a mix of 15% palm oil in June in an effort to lower diesel prices, the deputy prime minister said on Monday, as it grapples with elevated energy prices and supply constraints due to the Middle East conflict.
Malaysia is among countries in Asia turning to biofuels to reduce reliance on fossil fuel imports amid soaring oil prices in the wake of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.
* The Malaysian government said last month it would increase its 10% biodiesel mandate, known as B10, to a 15% blend starting with an initial production of 12% biodiesel blend.
* Nineteen production plants in the country will begin producing B15 biodiesel from June 1, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said in a speech to civil servants on Monday.
* The increase in the palm oil-based biodiesel blend will be done in phases, with the aim of shifting to a 20% mix and potentially approaching a 50% blend within the next two to three years, Ahmad Zahid said.
* Malaysia, the world's second-largest palm oil producer, currently imposes the B10 mandate for the transportation sector, though a 20% mandate has been implemented in the federal territory of Labuan, Langkawi island and the state of Sarawak, excluding the town of Bintulu.
* Malaysia's biodiesel consumption is set to rise by more than 300,000 metric tons annually, industry regulator the Malaysian Palm Oil Board told Reuters last month. - Reuters
