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Puerto Prinsesa, Palawan: The alternative fuels unit of the
Philippine National Oil Co. (PNOC) has yet to utilize most of its
war chest in its campaign to develop the jatropha plant for biofuel
use.
In a press conference, Renato Velasco, PNOC-Alternative
Fuels Corp. (PNOC-AFC) chairman, said the company at present has
exhausted P80 million of its P1.1-billion budget, which was
allocated by the government for jatropha development under a
five-year program.
The bulk of the funds amounting to around P30
million was used for research and development for the past two
years.
Velasco said PNOC-AFC has been spending a lot on
R&D to ensure the best results from the government’s
initiative to develop a cheaper biofuel source than coconut-derived
biodiesel.
The company’s extensive studies on jatropha,
he added, have been recently adjudged one of the top R&Ds in the
world by academic institutions in Indonesia and the United States.
However, Velaso said none so far has shown
interest in the lending window worth P10 billion offered by the Land
Bank of the Philippines for parties looking to invest in jatropha
plantations and refineries.
The Development Bank of the Philippines has also
opened a similar lending facility, he said.
To further promote jatropha cultivation, Velasco
added that PNOC-AFC is currently in talks with the Philippine Crop
Insurance Corp. for proposals to help farmers protect their
investments in jatropha plantations.
PNOC-AFC plans to buy jatropha seeds from
parties looking to put up jatropha plantations and process this into
crude jatropha oil, which in turn can be processed into biodiesel
and for other industrial uses.
-- Euan Paulo C. Añonuevo
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