JAKARTA: PT Pertamina (Persero) has been continually leading the way to develop bio-energy by utilizing crude palm oil (CPO) as raw material. After being successful in producing the D100, 100 percent processed from CPO, the state-owned company is now ready to conduct a production trial of green avtur by the end of this year (2020).
Pertamina President Director Nicke Widyawati said recently that all of its green energy products will utilize palm oil as raw material that is abundant in Indonesia as the world’s largest producer of CPO, so that the green energy production will increase local absorption of palm oil and have a very high local content. “It will cut our oil import, reduce our current account deficit, and generate our national economic growth,” Nicke said.
According to her, the production trial will be conducted with the technology of the injection co-processing of crude palm oil (CPO) which has undergone further processing or refined, bleached and deodorized palm oil (RBDPO) in its Cilacap refinery in Central Java.
Nicke said that Pertamina will actually develop two new units of standalone biorefinery, one in Cilacap, Central Java and another in Plaju, South Sumatra. “The production trial of green avtur is part of Pertamina’s roadmap on biorefinery development to realize green energy and energy self-sufficiency in Indonesia,” said Nicke in a press release recently.
The two units of standalone biorefinery are projected to be able to produce green diesel and green avtur with raw material 100 percent from palm oil. Initially, the standalone biorefinery in Cilacap will have a production capacity of 6,000 barrels per day, while the standalone biorefinery in Plaju will have the capacity of 20,000 barrels per day.
“Besides green diesel and green avtur, Pertamina had conducted a production trial of green gasoline. Several global companies have managed to produce green diesel and green avtur from palm oil. But Pertamina is the first company that has managed to produce green gasoline from palm oil,” she said.
According to her, Pertamina has been successful in conducting a production trial of the green gasoline in Plaju and Cilacap refineries in 2019 and 2020 with the processing of palm oil as raw material up to 20 percent injection.
Previously in July, Pertamina had managed to conduct a production trial of green diesel 100 percent (D100) at the production capacity of 1,000 barrels per day in its Dumai refinery in Riau province.
The D100 product is processed from 100 percent RBDPO with a catalyst made by Pertamina’s Research & Technology Center and Bandung institute of technology (ITB).
During a road test of 200 km, the D100 is blended with diesel fuel and fatty acid methyl ester (FAME), which is derived from CPO. It has proven to be more quality diesel fuel which is more efficient, less carbon emissions, and therefore friendly to the environment. “Considering the success of production trial and our production technology, now Pertamina is ready for commercial production. The next step for us is to think about its economics for commercial production,” she said. (*)
Source: KOMPAS.com
