September 21 International Fertilizer and Agricultural News

Indonesia to Continue Implementing 50% Biodiesel Blending Policy in 2027 (B50)

Indonesia will continue implementing its target of blending 50% biodiesel with fossil diesel, known as B50, in 2027, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, or ESDM, said today at the sixth Palm Biodiesel Conference in Bali. However, the ministry's director general, Eniya Listiani Dewi, said the government was also considering maintaining the 50% biodiesel blend next year while adding a further 10% hydrotreated vegetable oil, or HVO, component to the diesel fuel system. Indonesia currently requires diesel with a cetane number, or CN, of 51 to contain 5% HVO. According to ESDM data, domestic sales of CN51 diesel totaled 1.1 million kiloliters in 2025, CN48 diesel sales reached 1.3 million kiloliters, and CN53 diesel sales totaled 520,000 kiloliters. Raising the HVO blending rate to 10% across all diesel fuel grades would be very difficult, as Indonesia currently has no dedicated hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids, or HEFA, production facilities. The Dumai refinery operated by state-owned oil company Pertamina can produce a maximum of 45,000 tonnes of HVO per year through co-processing, but domestically produced pure HVO is not scheduled to enter the market until 2030. By that time, a HEFA facility is expected to be completed at the Plaju refinery in South Sumatra, with combined annual HVO and sustainable aviation fuel, or SAF, capacity of approximately 890,000 tonnes. According to Argus records, the project has yet to reach a final investment decision. Dewi added that Indonesia would allow at least one year for infrastructure and supply chain upgrades before further increasing its biodiesel blending rate. Indonesia officially implemented the B50 policy in July this year. HVO has the same chemical composition as fossil diesel and is a drop-in fuel that can be used in road vehicle engines without modification. Conventional biodiesel, by contrast, requires more extensive testing to ensure stable fuel use.