Maputo — The Galpbuzi consortium, consisting of the Mozambican Buzi Company and the Portuguese Galpenergia is planning to install a bio-fuels refinery in the district of Buzi, in the central Mozambican province of Sofala, within the next 10 years.

The undertaking is budgeted at 100,000 Euros (142.300 US dollars) per year

The general director of the consortium, Goncalo Barradas, cited in Tuesday's issue of the Maputo daily "Noticias", said that the biolfuels would be produced from sunflower and from the jatropha shrub.

He said that for the project to be viable, it will take the planting of at least 8,000 hectares to produce about 5,000 tonnes of seeds. The consortium has already planted 150 hectares of jatropha and 25 hectares of sunflower in the Buzi locality of Bandua.

Speaking during a recent visit of the Sofala provincial governor, Alberto Vaquina, Barradas said that what is being done is just the beginning of the undertaking, and more investments are on the way.

'We are planning to invest about 100,000 Euros every year as soon as we identify land that is free from any agricultural activity', he said.

He added that the idea is to produce bio-fuels for export and domestic consumption.

Barradas further explained that the project is counting on the contribution of small, medium and big farmers to produce the necessary raw material to feed the refinery.

"If we manage to get enough seeds to justify the installation of the refinery, both for export and for the domestic consumption, Galpbuzi will go ahead with the project", he said.

Vaquina described the project as a valid partner for the local farmers, and encouraged the introduction of new agricultural techniques to increase food production.

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