The Department of Energy (DOE) said Monday it will implement a 3-percent coco methyl ester (CME) blend in all diesel fuel on Oct. 1, 2024 to promote economic growth, foster environmental stewardship and support cleaner energy utilization.
It said this marks an increase from the current 2-percent CME blend. The blend will further increase to 4 percent by Oct. 1, 2025 and 5 percent by Oct. 1, 2026.
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The agency said the higher CME blend would benefit coconut farmers, biodiesel producers and other stakeholders in the coconut industry with around 900 million additional coconut nuts to produce 100 to120 million liters of CME requirements to satisfy a 1-percent mandatory increase in CME blend.
It said consumers would benefit with an increase in mileage from the average of 10 kilometers per liter of diesel to less than 11 kilometers.
The DOE said an on-road test covering 30,000 kilometers with a 5-percent CME blend demonstrated a 10-percent improvement in fuel mileage.
Based on the average diesel pump price of P54.70 per liter during the period of Sept. 24 to 30, 2024, the higher CME blend results in estimated savings of P0.50 per liter.
These savings are expected to offset any potential increase in pump prices due to the 1-percent rise in the CME blend, the DOE said.
Energy Secretary Raphael Lotilla announced last year he received a directive from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to increase the CME blend, which could be accommodated by the supply of feedstock.
Lotilla said total coconut production is about 15 billion nuts, and the additional 1-percent blend would need only 2.6 billion nuts.
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