South Korean Firm Plans To Build Biobutanol Plants In Malaysia's Sarawak

KUCHING, (Sarawak, Malaysia), Oct 7 (Bernama) -- South Korea's second largest petroleum refinery, GS Caltex Co, has inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Sarawak's Biomass Renewal Resources (BRR) to undertake feasibility studies for the proposed biobutanol plants in the state. The studies, which will be conducted in Miri, Bintulu, Tanjung Manis and Kuching, are to pave the way for Sarawak to become a biobutanol producer by leveraging on GS Caltex's expertise and technologies. The Malaysian Innovation Agency (AIM) will assist in the realisation of the butanol plants, which is considered a milestone for the Sarawak Biomass Industry Development Plan (SBIDP). Biobutanol or bio-based butanol fuel is a second generation alcoholic fuel with a higher energy density and lower volatility compared with ethanol. GS Caltex Vice-President Dr Do-Young Seung and BRR Chief Executive Officer Datuk Seri Aisah Mahmud signed the MoU here today, witnessed by Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas who represented Chief Minister Tan Sri Adenan Satem. BRR is a unit under the Pillar Foundation, a non-profit non-governmental organisation in Sarawak. Meanwhile, AIM Chief Executive Officer Mark Rozario said the biobutanol industry could become a game changer for Sarawak that would change the state's industrial landscape and open various opportunities throughout the value chain. "We have to be proactive in this aspect, we have to decide and be selective in these wide range of opportunities. "We have to select our niche and build on our strength and competencies to be the best in our strategic areas," he said in his speech. Launched in February this year, the SBIDP is aimed at developing the state to become a biomass processing hub in Southeast Asia. -- BERNAMA