MD sees PNG biofuel potential

KOKONAS Indastri Koporesen managing director Alan Aku says Karkar Island in Madang is the only place in Papua New Guinea were a private company is operating on biofuel.
“Vehicles and even some boats are operating on coconut biofuel from Kulili Estates,” Aku said.
He said this in Port Moresby yesterday when announcing that the country would host the 2024 World Coconut day from Sept 30 to Oct 5.
“We have a business, Kulili Estates, that produces coconut biofuel, it is on Karkar Island, they produce close to 720,000 litres annually, they fuel their operations, trucks and vehicles on coconut fuel, it is not blended, it is 100 per cent from coconuts.”
Asked on why this industry was not being expended, Aku said it was not an easy process. “It is a complicated process and is done mostly by the private sector,” he said.
They actually wanted to expend, they were going to partner with PNG Power Limited but that did not eventuate, but they are still running their vehicles on Karkar Island.”
He said in the past, the Autonomous Region of Bougainville had also used biofuel.
It is understood that going downstream on coconut biofuels is beyond the country’s capacity with so many vehicles, ships, boats, equipment that require conventional fuel derived from oil to operate.
The volumes of copra produced in PNG also cannot cater for the demand if there was a transition to the biofuel.
According to reports, big coconut producing countries like the Philippines and Indonesia who produce biofuels cannot meet demand but they still blend it with fossil fuels.
Meanwhile, Aku said for PNG exports, the commodity (copra and coconut products) generated about K130 million annually.
“In the domestic market, we estimate that about 380 million coconuts are consumed every year, the Highlands region has increased its consumption of coconuts, and from Madang alone, 65,000 coconuts a month are going up to the Highlands so if you sell one for K3 each, we have millions.
“The price of coconut is now K2, K3 and K4 so this is a K500 million plus industry.
“There are about 364,000 households involved in coconut production, based on the 2011 census,” Aku said.