Maravi

BAZ commends govt for adopting revised energy policy

BAZ commends govt for adopting revised energy policy
By Fridah Zinyama
Saturday December 29, 2007 [03:00]

THE Bio-fuel Association of Zambia (BAZ) has commended the government for finally adopting the revised energy policy as it is going to help the renewable energy sector in the country grow. In an interview, BAZ chairperson Professor Thompson Sinkala said the government had held a meeting with stakeholders from the bio-fuel, electricity and biomass industries to discuss the way forward in the energy sector.

Prof Sinkala said the government’s decision to adopt the energy policy would go a long way in helping the bio-fuel sector to decide what percentage of bio-diesel and bio-ethanol would be blended with petrol and diesel.

“As a sector we recommended that government should allow for three percent of blending of petrol and diesel,” he said.

Prof Sinkala said the association was optimistic that the government would be able to save a lot of money once the blending process of renewable fuels started in the country.

“We have been asking farmers across the country to grow Jatropha as it will help them to improve the income generation,” he said. “We have also been promoting non-food plants in order not to tamper with the food security of the country.”

Early this month, BAZ had announced that an Australian company, Oval Bio-fuels, had started producing bio-diesel in Lusaka’s industrial area.

The company had started bio-diesel production from soya oil on a pilot basis in order to test the machines they had brought into the country.

Labels: BIOFUELS ASSOCIATION OF ZAMBIA, JATROPHA

posted by MrK @ 9:16 AM