Acta Universitatis Agriculturae et Silviculturae Mendelianae Brunensis, the scientific journal of the Mendel University in Brno, Czech Republic

Indonesia needs to find an alternative fuel to substitute diesel in their power plants in order to reduce the use of nonrenewable energy sources. The Indonesian government has a target to reduce oil fuel consumption while improving the efficiency of energy utilization. Crude palm oil is proposed to be used for this substitution. In this paper, the authors conduct an economic analysis of the replacement of diesel by crude palm oil. To predict future prices, a time series analysis is conducted using AutoRegressive Integrated Moving-Average method. A financial analysis of a specific project (0.75-MW power plant) is conducted using static financial indicators (payback period, return on investment). Results show that replacing diesel with crude palm oil may be profitable. This is especially true for the proposed prospects of diesel price evolution. Analysis shows that the price of crude oil, which is the main factor in the pricing of diesel, may go up. Also, recently Indonesian currency depreciated against the US dollar, which also implies a higher cost of diesel.

Recent movements for the decarbonization of the electricity sector have become a priority for many countries around the world and will inevitably lead to the sharp decline of fossil-fuel-based energy. Energy from fossil fuels is to be replaced by renewable energy sources (RES), although the transition will neither be cheap nor smooth. One sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative to fossil fuels and which will take a considerable share in the increasing supply of renewable energy resources is biofuels. There are various types of biofuels used in practice; however, biodiesels represent one of the most popular and widespread ones. This paper focuses as a case study on the byproducts of Jatropha curcas, a crop and a plant that is already used for biofuel production and which is subsequently employed in electricity generation in Jatropha curcas producing regions. This paper identifies the limitations and prospects of Jatropha curcas utilization. Also, Jatropha curcas is compared to other materials suitable for biomass generation. An economic analysis for a 2 MW biofuel powerplant was conducted incorporating various market-related risks. The study shows that at current prices, net profitability can be achieved using Jatropha curcas byproducts for producing electricity.