Jatropha targets under realized

The use of the jatropha curcas plant in biofuels remains limited because of widespread doubt among farmers and investors about its economic feasibility, experts said. Erliza Hambali, director of the Surfactant and Bioenergy Research Center (SBRC) at the Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB) in Indonesia said the development of jatropha was still well below target levels. “The National Biofuel Team is aiming for 1.5 million hectares of jatropha plantations by 2010. However, as of April this year, we have only achieved 8% of that number, or about 121,200 hectares,” she said. She said that lack of government support for the project was also to blame although a presidential decree was issued in 2006 promoting the development of biofuels. (June 25, 2008)