Monday, May 21, 2007 British firm lures Minda farmers to grow jatropha
A BRITISH company is going around Mindanao to entice farmers to cultivate jatropha curcas or tuba-tuba with the hope to plant 10,000 in the near term.
Recto Doctor, country agronomist of D1 Oils Asia Pacific, Incorporated, a subsidiary of D1 Oils UK, said the company would provide planting materials, technical assistance and a marketing agreement to farmers willing to grow the crop.
"Farmers can pay us upon harvest," he said. Doctor said the firm is aggressive in its jatropha project now that the country is implementing the Biofuels Act, which was signed into law only last January 17.
He noted that the firm prefers unutilized lands than converting existing farmlands grown with crops like corn and rice to jatropha plantations.
Jatropha, Doctor pointed out, would help alleviate poverty in the countryside and can help in the protection of the environment since it can prevent soil erosion.
The crop could be harvested seven months from planting and has a life span of 30 years, he said, adding that for the first year, a hectare could yield between P15,000 to P20,000 and grows bigger to P30,000 as the plant matures.
D1 Oils Asia is working out a financing window for farmers through the Land Bank of the Philippines, he disclosed, details of which Doctor did not discussed.
The firm has plans to establish a refinery in the country but only after the desired number of hectares will be planted with jatropha, Doctor said.
With 500 to 1,000 hectares, it would be enough to put up an extracting plant, he added.
Doctor is validating the existing jatropha plantation in Central Mindanao but present figure is still insignificant at less than 100 hectares.
Riding on the prospect of the biofuel industry, independent oil producers like Seaoil Philippines Corporation earlier revealed plans to embark on an initial public offering this year or early 2008 to raise funds for the construction of an ethanol plant.
Under the Biofuels Act, gasoline should initially be blended with 5 percent ethanol, ensuring a steady market for ethanol producers.
Seaoil is also part of the recently formed Enerfuse Holdings, Incorporated that is putting up a biodiesel plant in Sasa, Davao City.
Enerfuse also includes independent oil firms Eastern Petroleum Corp., Flying V and Unioil.
Jatropha is a rich source of biodiesel that is considered an alternative to the depleting global supply of fossil fuels. Biodiesel is being promoted also as an environmentally friendly fuel.
In its website, D1 Asia, based in Singapore, said that future demand for biodiesel is expected to be strong in Southeast Asia, a region with a suitable climatic condition for jatropha.
In 2005, D1 Asia forged an agreement with the Atlas Consolidated Mining and Development Corporation to collaborate on a project in the Philippines aimed at rehabilitating land previously degraded by mining through the cultivation of jatropha.
In the Philippines, the price per kilo of jatropha fruits is reportedly placed at P10. (BSS)
