Ethiopia’s Jatropha plantation set to produce biodiesel

Ethiopia is expanding its Jatropha plantation to produce 500 million litres of biodiesel from the plant, which can yield 600 litres of biodiesel from a single tonne of seeds.

'The country has designed a five-year Jatropha development project aimed at transplanting 700 million Jatropha seedlings and produce 500 million litres biodiesel,' says Bizuneh Tolcha, spokesperson for the Ministry of Water, Energy and Irrigation.

The Ethiopian and Norwegian governments are working together on the project at a cost of over $2.8 million (€2.1 million).