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Brazil is seeking to bring Indonesia, the world's largest palm oil producer, into the Global Biofuels Alliance, an international coalition aimed at promoting the use of sustainable biofuels.
Biofuels topped the agenda when Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva hosted his Indonesian counterpart, Prabowo Subianto, in the capital Brasília on Wednesday. According to a joint statement issued after the talks, both sides consider themselves major bioenergy producers. The 40-point statement stressed their desire to cooperate within international forums such as BRICS and the G20 to push for policies that encourage sustainable production and use of biofuels. In this context, Brazil wants Indonesia to join the recently established Global Biofuels Alliance.
The statement read:
"President Lula da Silva encouraged Indonesia to consider joining the Global Biofuels Alliance."
The Global Biofuels Alliance was established during India's presidency of the G20 in 2023, and now includes 29 countries, among them the United States, one of the world's largest biofuel producers. The alliance also comprises 14 international organisations, including the World Bank and the Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC). It additionally provides technical support for national biofuel programmes.
Indonesia is capitalising on its abundant palm oil supply to produce biodiesel, and Southeast Asia's largest economy currently mandates a 40% palm oil content in its biodiesel blend, a policy known as B40. This percentage refers to the palm oil content, which has continued to rise year after year.
Brazil, meanwhile, is a major producer of ethanol, another type of biofuel, relying primarily on sugarcane as its feedstock. Indonesia also produces ethanol from sugarcane, though its output remains far behind Brazil's levels.
During the joint press conference, Prabowo praised Brazil's efforts in the biofuels sector, saying:
"You are setting a good example with your use of biofuels and your innovations in agriculture."
Prabowo added that the Brazilian government had approved Jakarta's request to send technical teams to study Brazil's technology and innovations. The retired general stated that Indonesia aims to reach 100% renewable energy by 2040, and even noted that some experts had told him this could be achieved sooner than expected.
He said:
"Once again, we see your success in developing biofuels."
According to Brazilian government data, the country's biofuel production hit a record in 2023, with combined ethanol and biodiesel output reaching around 43 billion litres, of which more than 7.5 billion litres was biodiesel alone.
In Indonesia, the Energy Ministry reported that the country distributed at least 4.3 million kilolitres of palm oil-based B40 fuel during the first four months of 2025, and the Indonesian government plans to raise the mandatory blend to 50% next year.