BIOFUEL

Aston Lloyd Bio-Commodities Ltd
Aston Lloyd Bio-Commodities Ltd is a subsidiary of Aston Lloyd Holdings Plc, a leading global investment company, specialising in innovative new projects in rapidly growing international markets and commodities.
Situated in the heart of the financial district of London, and led by a team of professionals with over 30 years of experience, Aston Lloyd is leading the way in high capital growth investment abroad.
With a large portfolio of exciting projects in countries such as Bulgaria, Turkey, Slovakia, Northern Cyprus and Ukraine; Aston Lloyd now has more than €70 million worth of developments under management, from agricultural land to alternative hotel investments.
After noticing the global boom in biofuels, and the rapidly growing energy needs of the world population, Aston Lloyd is proud to present to the market another groundbreaking project. We are able to offer investors the opportunity to make strong returns in the alternative energy sector whilst developing biofuels, and helping to halt climate change, through jatropha oil investment in Indonesia.
Why Biofuels?
Biofuels are nature’s way of producing clean burning energy and therefore present a profitable investment opportunity for Aston Lloyd’s clients. Biofuel prices are increasing, reasons for this include:
• Climate change – We can no longer afford the increasing amount of carbon emissions from fossil fuels, which hiked by 41% between 1990 and 2008 (The Independent, November 2009)
• Growing energy consumption – The world population will reach 9 billion by 2045, meaning soaring demand for energy, as developing countries consume more as they grow (US Census Bureau, February 2010)
• Oil crisis – There is an incoming “oil crunch” within five years, with the potential to be more serious than the credit crisis, making the search for sustainable fuel urgent (Sir Richard Branson, Virgin group, The Telegraph, February 2010)
Biofuels have long been considered an environmentally sound and sustainable alternative to fossil fuels such as oil and gas.
The majority of governments worldwide are highly supportive of biofuels, with the UK government claiming that they reduce carbon emissions by 50%-60% compared to fossil fuels (Daily Telegraph, July 2008). In fact, biofuel production in OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries is currently supported by US$13 billion to US$15billion per year (OECD/ITF, 2008).
In recent years, there has been government-legislated use of biofuels around the world boosting demand. In the UK, 5% of all fuel has to come from renewable sources by 2011 (Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation Order, 2009); while the EU-wide transport sector has to source 10% of its energy needs from renewable energy by 2020 (Euractiv, 2009). Biofuel production in the US is also planned to reach 36 billion gallons a year by 2022 (Reuters, February 2010).
From this demand, Aston Lloyd has identified a biofuel that may be the key to the future of global energy – jatropha oil.

Biofuel power prices (price /barrel in US$)$305
Cellulose$125
Wheat$125
Rapeseed$122
Soybean$83
Corn$45
Sugar cane$43
Jatropha*$79
Oil price* Average cost of producing jatropha oil
Goldman Sachs, Wall Street Journal; Oil Price.net, March 2010

What is Jatropha?
For many years farmers didn’t care about it, a drought-resistant inedible wild green shrub which grows almost anywhere, even on gravelly or sandy soils. It was mostly used as a hedge to keep livestock contained. But the seeds from jatropha’s fruit have been found to contain a liquid, which can be made into biodiesel and sold as a renewable energy. Back in 2007, Goldman Sachs cited jatropha as one of the best candidates for future biodiesel production, and since then it has soared from strength to strength. The market price is linked to Brent oil. For example, if Brent oil is trading at US$80 per barrel, jatropha will be trading at over US$700 per metric tonne.
Each jatropha seed contains approximately 25%-35% crude jatropha oil, which under further processing can be transformed into commercial biodiesel. On average 1 hectare of jatropha trees produces in excess of 2 metric tonnes of crude jatropha oil; this is among the highest of all tree-borne oil seeds.
Jatropha’s potential to help halt the effects of climate change are vast, reducing 66-68% of the greenhouse gas emissions compared with fossil diesel (EcoFYS, GHG Performance of Jatropha Biodiesel, June 2008).
Most biofuels are the subject of a number of concerns. Vital agricultural land is often being used for growing fuel rather than food, restricting the amount of land use and crops which can feed a growing population. But not jatropha. Because jatropha is inedible, it is not diverting food crops. And because it grows almost anywhere, even on land unsuitable for food crops, it is not offsetting any agricultural land.
Institutional investors and countries are recognising the potential of jatropha. India has put huge efforts into cultivation, setting aside 100 million hectares, expecting the oil to account for 20% of its diesel consumption by 2011 (Time Magazine, 2009). But the country considered a potential jatropha superpower is Indonesia, which is incorporating jatropha into its biofuels plan.
Aston Lloyd now offers the opportunity to enjoy returns from this green energy boom, through jatropha in Indonesia.
Investment snapshot
 Aston Lloyd is offering investors access to jatropha-producing plantations in Java, Indonesia
 Sold per hectare with approximately 1,600 seedlings and branch cuttings for €1,200
 A payment of €900 per hectare of land will be due in Q4 2010 for plantation of the jatropha cuttings
 Once crop pruning commences, a one-off fee of €500 per hectare of land will be due in Q4 2011
 Investors receive full certificate of land entitlement for 30 years
 Experienced farm management company Waterland International ‘on the ground’ to oversee operations, and to improve productivity and yields for investors.
Who else believes in jatropha?
 Air New Zealand has announced that it expects to use at least one million barrels of sustainable biofuel annually by 2013, after a successful two-hour test flight with a jatropha powered Boeing 747
 Mother Earth Plantations, a Singapore-based company, has invested a phenomenal US$100 million into jatropha plantations in Indonesia
 NASA, who in February 2010 launched the Space Shuttle Endeavour with jatropha biodiesel on board, to carry out experiments on the fuel
 The China National Offshore Oil Corporation, China’s largest offshore oil and gas producer has begun its first government-run project to produce 150,000 tonnes of jatropha biodiesel every year
 The UN includes jatropha projects in its Clean Development Mechanism, a system to earn saleable ‘credits’ through accredited projects which help mitigate climate change. Reuters; Business Green; Jatropha HQ; Biofuels Digest; NASA

Why Indonesia?
Boasting the largest economy in Southeast Asia, Indonesia has enjoyed outstanding economic growth that is projected to reach 7% in 2011, after growing by 4% in 2009 even amid the global economic crisis (IMF, 2010). 44.3% of its 95 million labour force work in the agricultural sector with experienced workers in biofuel crop production, making Indonesia an ideal place for Aston Lloyd’s green energy project (UNFAO, 2009).
Currently the world’s largest producer of crude palm oil, Indonesia has the capacity to produce 2.9 million kiloliters of biodiesel per year along with a massive budget of US$22 billion for the promotion of alternative fuels (Biopact, Mongabay.com, 2007).
As jatropha requires significantly less water than oil palms, there has been a surge in jatropha plantations in the region (GEXSI, Global Market Study on Jatropha, May 2008).
The Indonesia Investment Coordinating Board is targeting a 10% to 15% increase in investments in 2010, from US$13 billion to US$14 billion in 2009 (Channel News Asia, Indonesia Investment Coordinating Board, January 2010).
The climate is perfect for jatropha, with Dutch Professor H J Heeres projecting more than 25 million hectares of land in the country, an area bigger than the UK, is suitable for production of the plant (Reuters, 2006).
According to research undertaken by GEXSI for the World Wide Fund for Nature, one of the most suitable regions in the country is the island of Java, perfect for Aston Lloyd’s green energy project (GEXSI, Global Market Study on Jatropha, May 2008).

Waterland International
Aston Lloyd Bio-Commodities Ltd has contracted Waterland International, an Indonesian-based management company, with many years experience in jatropha cultivation, as their preferred local partner to oversee the operations of the land.
Michael Lucas, Managing Director of Aston Lloyd, said “A pivotal factor in achieving good yields is experienced hands-on management, something which we have locked-in with this locally-based management company in Java. We have drawn expertise from managers, scientists, agronomists, and jatropha specialists in Waterland International who are currently supervising 72,000 hectares of jatropha in the same region as our land.”
Waterland International employs an in-house agricultural technology enterprise that has developed high-yielding jatropha plants which give a superior yield and oil content. This is a result of more than six years of research and development with patented planting material and seeds capable of producing 6-12 tonnes of fruit per hectare and 2 tonnes of biofuel. The jatropha plants also keep the soil clear of toxicity. Waterland International are also unique in the industry in that they use pruning technics three times a year in the first two years, creating a higher yield and assisting strong plant growth.
They are a leader in jatropha research and development in Asia, and have successfully developed first class research and technology bases in Indonesia, Germany, the Netherlands, India, Vietnam and Malaysia that accelerate commercialisation of next generation biofuels and renewable power generation.
Waterland International environmental and social commitment gives access to large scale reforestation projects in excess of several hundred thousand hectares all across Asia. Waterland International is focused and dedicated to growing high-yielding jatropha biofuel on an industrial scale and at competitive cost to meet ever increasing international demand for sustainable, renewable, non-food biofuel stocks.
Waterland International follows the S.E.E.D principle throughout its jatropha operations:
Social sustainability
 Alleviating poverty
 Creating large scale rural employment
 Improving quality of life for local communities
 Funding local schools and hospitals
 Enabling farmers to qualify for governmental funding to build their own home, lifting them above the poverty line
Economic sustainability
 Attractive economics and returns based on high performing plants and product quality
 Commercialization of jatropha plantations in locations that meet optimized climatic, agronomic and logistic conditions
 Only credible non-food biofuel plants, low-cost and efficient
Environmental sustainability
 Supporting biodiversity and ecological balance
 Protecting natural resources and tropical rainforests
 Mitigating slash-and-burn farming in ASEAN countries
 Promoting environmental conservation
 Using every bit of the plant for minimal waste
Developmental sustainability
 Stimulating rural economic development and growth
 Converting marginal lands into thriving plantations
 Strengthening of rural infrastructure
 Rural electrification and decentralized power generation
 Favourable energy balance
Waterland International successes
Waterland International is a global alternative energy company who has a long track record of success with jatropha. They have negotiated strategic off-take agreements with key industry players to secure the market introduction of the products. Further successes include:
• An Australian company who partnered with Waterland International with a jatropha plantation in Asia. This company is producing jatropha one year earlier than planned and has been so successful that they are now listed on the Australian Stock Exchange
• Development of a renewable energy and biomass power plant in Brussels, Belgium. The plant is powered by jatropha oil directly from Waterland Internationals in Indonesia with 85% efficiency and 90% power availability

• Waterland International’s affiliated company has supplied jatropha oil for a power plant in the Dutch seaport of Delfzijl, the first unit of which will have capacity of 0.2 million tons per annum. This will start production on the 1st April and will be completely powered by jatropha.
Aston Lloyd is confident its partnership with Waterland International will lead to success both in generating high returns and mitigating climate change. Whilst Waterland International are our preferred management company, as part of the project investors are free to have their land farmed by a jatropha planting company of their choosing.