Higher biodiesel blend pushed to ease oil price crunch
A committee under the Philippine Council for Agriculture and Fisheries (PCAF) is pushing for a higher biodiesel blend that could improve vehicle mileage and cushion the impact of surging fuel prices amid the ongoing war in the Middle East.
The PCAF’s National Sectoral Committee (NSC) on Coconut has approved a manifesto supporting the full implementation of Republic Act No. 9367, or the Biofuels Act of 2006, and an immediate transition to a 5-percent biodiesel blend.
According to the committee, raising the coconut component in diesel would reduce the country’s dependence on imported fuel and provide a stable market for millions of Filipino coconut farmers.
“Although not a ‘quick fix’ for the high gas prices the country is currently facing, the full implementation of biofuel and B5 transition offers superior engine performance, better mileage, and a more self-reliant energy sector that reduces long-term costs,” said the PCAF, an attached agency of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that serves as the bridge between the government and the private sector, in a statement.
The committee will endorse the said manifesto to Sen. Francis Pangilinan, chair of the Senate committee on agriculture, food and agrarian reform.
“The shift is no longer just an environmental goal but a national necessity. It is time to move to B5,” said Victor Gerardo Bulatao, Kaisahan representative to the NSC on Coconut.
Better mileage
Dean Lao Jr., vice chair of the United Coconut Association of the Philippines, said the increased biodiesel blend could improve vehicle mileage.
“When the blend was increased from B2 (2 percent) to B3 (3 percent), there [was] an improvement. Every car and driver will be different but I would estimate a mileage gain of at least 3 percent,” Lao told the Inquirer in a Viber message over the weekend.
Lao said the higher blend will also contribute to the reduction in road emissions.
“The science behind better mileage is complete combustion of the fuel and more efficient operation of compression-ignition (diesel) engines. This is also evidenced by cleaner emission (no smoke-belching),” he added.
Lao said some oil companies have coco methyl ester (CME) preblended into the diesel. CME has a high cetane number and better lubricating properties.
“The science and tests were long established and accepted to say that CME improves mileage,” he said. “Removing CME will take away all the benefits that come with it.”
The Department of Energy (DOE) issued an advisory last year suspending the 4-percent and the 5-percent biodiesel blend scheduled for implementation in October 2025 and this year, respectively.
Coconut oil price
The DOE acted on the National Biofuels Board’s (NBB) recommendation to defer the higher biodiesel blend, as global coconut oil prices soared by more than 300 percent per metric ton.
The NBB is a government body responsible for monitoring the implementation of the country’s biofuel program and the biofuels and biofuel blends.
“The decision was made in view of the anticipated significant impact on pump prices and the potential inflationary effects on the national economy,” the advisory read.
Under the Biofuels Act, all industry players are required to incorporate locally sourced biofuels in all liquid fuels for motors and engines sold across the country.
At present, the CME component in diesel remains at 3 percent, which took effect on Oct. 1, 2024. CME is a fatty acid ester produced from coconut oil and when blended with diesel, it turns into coco-biodiesel.
At the House of Representatives, Bicol Saro Rep. Terry Ridon, chair of the committee on public accounts, said on Saturday that the bill allowing President Marcos to suspend or reduce excise on oil products without the usual three-month waiting period is “almost finished.”
Ridon said it could reach the Senate by the end of next week.
Once approved, the President, who has certified the bill as urgent, can implement the suspension immediately, Ridon said, hoping that the relief will be felt in about two weeks’ time.
“A fuel price reduction of up to P10 per liter is possible once the excise taxes are suspended. This is a significant measure, and hopefully, within the next two weeks, our fellow citizens will be able to benefit from this intervention,” Ridon said at the Saturday News Forum in Quezon City.
The lawmaker described the move as “unprecedented,” noting that granting the President the authority to reduce, suspend, or remove excise on fuel is historic.
In the past, such intervention required a three-month waiting period to get an average of $80 per barrel of fuel, but the new measure removes that delay, allowing for faster action, Ridon noted. —WITH A REPORT FROM ISABELLE PECHAY
