The Bangkok Post BUSINESS NEWS - Wednesday 01 September 2004 ENERGY - ALTERNATIVE FUELS
Four deals signed to boost biofuel ventures by YUTHANA PRAIWAN Four accords were signed yesterday to promote the development of biofuels as an alternative energy source in Thailand, evidence of the shift in government policy aimed at reducing the nation's dependence on costly imported oil. The signing ceremony took place as Bangkok hosted a two-day international conference titled ``Biofuel: Challenges for Asia's Future'' at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre, which ended yesterday. First signed was a memorandum of understanding between Thailand's ACG Group, a leading food supplement and cosmetics producer, and Bayer Technological Service Co of Germany to study a project to produce palm oil for blending with diesel oil. Jompoj Pijitpakdeekul, the president of ACG, said the group planned to invest about two billion baht to build a palm oil extraction plant with the German firm supplying machinery, technology and marketing expertise for the project. The plant's proposed extraction output will be between 100,000 and 300,000 litres per year. The project will also require that palm plantations be raised by 10,000 to 20,000 rai in the Southern provinces. The study, due to be completed in six months, will seek financing from state-run Krung Thai Bank and the Government Savings Bank for the plant's construction. The second agreement signed was between the Thai Sugar Miller Co-op of Thailand and Unica, the Portuguese acronym for the Sao Paulo Sugarcane Agroindustry Union, to co-operate on technology transfers and management know-how. Prakit Prateepasen, the chairman of the Thai sugar firm, said the co-operation agreement would help improve ethanol production efficiency. The third deal signed was between PTT Plc and Coimex Trading Co, Brazil's largest commodity trading company which focuses on international trade in sugar, ethanol, coffee, meat, corn, soybeans and byproducts, to co-operate in expanding Asia's ethanol market. PTT president Prasert Bunsumpun said the co-operation will initially involve the establishment of a local standard for blending gasohol _ a mixture of ethanol and petrol _ for fuelling the region's vehicles. Finally, an agreement was signed between PTT and Petron, the Philippine national energy firm, to co-operate in research and development of gasohol and biodiesel for vehicles in both countries. Captain Samai Jai-in, chief of the Naval Dockyard Department's research and development division, said his department, in co-operation with the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration and the Energy Ministry, would use biodiesel on a trial basis in about 1,000 city buses, especially the old ones and those belching out black smoke, by the end of this year. The fuel will be a mix of 20% palm oil and diesel. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Make a clean sweep of pop-up ads. Yahoo! Companion Toolbar. Now with Pop-Up Blocker. Get it for free! http://us.click.yahoo.com/L5YrjA/eSIIAA/yQLSAA/FGYolB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Biofuels list archives: http://infoarchive.net/sgroup/biofuel/ Please do NOT send Unsubscribe messages to the list address. To unsubscribe, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/biofuel/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/