Investment received by Botswana biodiesel project

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has supported a biodiesel project based in Botswana, Africa.

JICA will donate an estimated P$2 million (€175,000) worth of equipment to aid a biodiesel processing plant, which uses jatropha feedstock, at helping the country reduce its dependency on fuel imports.

The overall project started in Botswana last year and the donated equipment will go towards helping jatropha plants thrive in Mozambique.

‘Botswana’s temperatures range from zero to 40˚C, but jatropha requires a temperature range of around 20 to 30˚C. This is a challenge we have to address,’ says agricultural research officer Stephen Chite.

The equipment provided via the JICA investment includes a portable photosynthesis and fluorescence system, a denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis machine and a weather station. The overall project involving the 50 million litre a year plant is set to last for five years.