JAKARTA, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia's state-owned oil company PT Pertamina is expanding its project to process used cooking oil into sustainable aviation fuel, an environmentally friendly, low-carbon alternative energy source.
According to Pertamina's subsidiary, PT Kilang Pertamina Internasional (KPI), the initiative, called the Used Cooking Oil to Sustainable Aviation Fuel (USAF) project, has been underway at the Cilacap refinery, Indonesia's largest oil processing facility, in Central Java province. The project will expand to the Dumai refinery in Riau and the Balongan refinery in West Java.
"This USAF project is tangible proof of our commitment not only to maintaining national energy sustainability but also to developing a sustainable, low-carbon energy portfolio. This initiative is highly relevant in promoting the use of environmentally friendly new and renewable energy," said KPI Executive Director Taufik Aditiyawarman on Tuesday, as quoted by local media.
He explained that the USAF project began in 2020 when the Cilacap Refinery produced Bioavtur J2.4 from palm kernel oil. A year later, the fuel was tested in a CN-235 aircraft flight, followed by a 2023 trial on a Garuda Indonesia commercial flight for the Jakarta-Solo route.
"The two trials prove that plant-based aviation fuel is no longer just a concept. It has now become a reality," he said. ■
