Manila: The Department of Agriculture (DA) is exploring cheaper and more diverse feedstock options to make locally produced bioethanol more competitive with imports while protecting industries that rely on the same crops, the agency said Tuesday.
According to Philippines News Agency, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. and Energy Secretary Sharon Garin discussed measures to reduce feedstock costs, maximize idle distillery capacity, and increase domestic ethanol production as the government considers raising the national bioethanol blend from 10 percent to 15 percent.
The two agencies are evaluating feedstock sources such as molasses, sugarcane juice, and locally produced corn to support higher ethanol output and reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels. "We are studying these options carefully, and there is potential for them to help bring down gasoline prices," Tiu Laurel said in a statement.
However, the DA noted that domestic feedstock remains more expensive than imported supplies, while locally produced bioethanol costs about twice as much as imported alternatives. Higher feedstock costs translate to an estimated PHP1 increase per liter in ethanol prices, it said.
Sugarcane-derived feedstock currently accounts for most of the country's annual bioethanol production of 325 million to 385 million liters. Local processing plants, however, have a combined capacity of more than 500 million liters. Corn has emerged as a key alternative feedstock because of its relatively short 90-to-110-day harvest cycle and the production of Dried Distillers Grains with Solubles (DDGS), a high-protein byproduct used as livestock feed.
"The problem is not the availability of corn but whether it can be bought at a price that makes ethanol commercially viable," Tiu Laurel said. The DA, however, noted that increased demand from ethanol distilleries could drive up corn prices and affect livestock raisers who depend on the crop for animal feed.
Palm oil is also being evaluated as a feedstock for biodiesel and sustainable aviation fuel, although new plantations require at least three years to mature. Meanwhile, the government is finalizing the Philippine National Standard for bioethanol, with the draft policy currently undergoing public consultation.
