Consumption of biodiesel fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) in Indonesia is forecast to fall short of this year’s target by 13.6% due to falling fuel demand, The Jakarta Post reported on 28 July.
Biodiesel consumption was expected to reach 8.3M kl, down from 9.6M kl of subsidised FAME allocated for 2020, the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry’s Renewables Director General Sutijastoto was quoted as saying.
Despite the lower consumption, Sutijastoto said his office would not revise the annual biodiesel subsidy budget, which was stipulated under energy ministry decree No. 119/2019.
“We still keep the decree in case things change,” he was quoted as saying at a press briefing.
The ministry’s estimate was based on state-owned Pertamina’s projections that fuel consumption would fall by around 25% this year, compared with normal conditions, due to businesses remaining partially closed.
The lower fuel consumption had been primarily driven by lower aviation fuel and gasoline consumption due to social restrictions imposed during COVID-19 lockdowns.
However, there had been a less steep decline in diesel consumption due to commercial vehicle activity remaining relatively more active during the pandemic, The Jakarta Post said.
