Peru

Abstract

Increasing agricultural productivity and diversity are crucial to reduce poverty and promote rural development in Peru. Bioenergy can boost development in rural areas of Peru if the right feedstocks, technologies, and policies are used. This chapter focuses on key issues for biofuels' production in the Peruvian context, including biodiesel and ethanol. Palm oil and Jatropha are identified as key feedstocks for biodiesel, and blending policies are reviewed. Under current conditions, palm oil is a more economic feedstock than Jatropha for biodiesel, though shortcomings of palm oil also are reviewed. For the case of ethanol, blending policies and the current production from sugarcane, concentrated in the northern zone of Peru, are discussed. Several cost scenario results are presented for biodiesel and fuel ethanol production under Peruvian conditions. These results increase our understanding of the challenges facing small landholder inclusion in Peru's biofuel production chains.