PNOC Acquires Jatropha Equipment for R&D Activity

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TheBioenergySite Latest News

Thursday, June 26, 2008

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PNOC Acquires Jatropha Equipment for R&D Activity

THE PHILIPPINES - Due to flexibility of crude oil prices in the world market, the biofuels branch of state-owned PNOC stresses on the need to speed up the R&D process of biofuels in the country.

The PNOC-Alternative Fuels Corporation (PNOC-AFC) has recently acquired a set of equipment necessary to get oil from jatropha, which they co-funded with the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) for the process development of biofuels.

"The PNOC-AFC has bought a set of equipment which includes a small-scale jatropha expeller that can process around 120 kilograms of jatropha seeds per hour. The equipment are already with the DOST," said Peter Anthony A. Abaya, PNOC-AFC president and CEO.

Aside from the small-scale jatropha expeller, other equipment that were brought to the DOST are the decorticator, biomass feed boiler/steam, steam kettle, and filter press.

"In addition, the construction of a Jatropha Processing Facility at the DOST – where the processing of the jatropha fruit, expelling of the seeds, purification of the oil, and transesterification will be done for the biofuels production – is set to be completed before the year ends. Aside from this, a Biofuel Testing and Analytical Facility will be put up also at the DOST for laboratory analysis of major parameters needed for the evaluation of biofuels production in the country," added Abaya.

The setting up of the aforesaid facilities are joint collaborative undertaking among DOST; Philippine Council for Industry and Energy Research and Development; Industrial Technology Development Institute; and Metals Industry Research and Development Center in cooperation with the PNOC-AFC.

"This only shows that the PNOC-AFC's R&D covers not only the agronomy aspect of jatropha but also on the extraction and processing of oil into biodiesel," stressed Abaya.

"We have always been in high spirits since the Government has been very supportive of PNOC-AFC. It has not backtracked from developing alternative sources of energy that are abundant in the country to further reduce the RP's dependence on imported oil which has reached a record-high of US$140 per barrel in the world market this month," Abaya ended.

The acquisition of equipment for process development of biofuels is just a part of the R&D project of PNOC-AFC with the DOST. The PNOC-AFC and the DOST had a memorandum of understanding in March last year to strengthen themselves as strategic partners in research and development activities on alternative fuels and support the advancement of biofuels in the country.

TheBioenergySite News Desk