West Java plants to produce ethanol from yams

South Korea’s LBL Network Ltd. has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the West Java Province and the governments of Kuningan, Subang, Sumedang and Indramayu regencies, to build a factory for processing yams to bio-ethanol in West Java. According to Tony Firmansyah, director of PT Mitra Sae International, project administrator, the factory will have an annual manufacturing capacity of 200 million liters of ethanol, which by far, will be the largest bio-ethanol plant in Indonesia. The location of the plant will be around Indramayun Sumedang or Subang. Total investment, including working capital is US$100 million. Firmansyah said that 1.2 million tons per year of fresh yam would be required as raw material and an estimated 23,000 hectares of land will be needed to produce it. (December 1, 2006)