Why rely on imported oil and gas when we can grow a prosperous future with biosolutions?
Southeast Asia imports 60% of its crude oil from the Middle East — a share projected to reach 70–80% over the next 20 years. The region is becoming a net LNG importer and it depends on extra-regional sources for more than two thirds of its fertilizer imports, creating systemic vulnerability across energy, food and industry.
But there is another way. Home-grown solutions like bioethanol, biodiesel and biogas can replace fossil-based alternatives, paving the way for energy resilience, competitive economies and enhanced food and national security.
All of this is possible thanks to biosolutions
As the world's largest palm oil producer, a top-5 rice exporter, and home to vast sugarcane and cassava cultivation, Southeast Asia is well-positioned to use its agricultural output to ensure both energy resilience and national security — as well as help boost rural incomes and exports. If done right, the agricultural output can ensure both food, feed and energy.
Examples of this output include:
of agricultural biomass produced per year (sugarcane, palm, rice straw, cassava)
of biodiesel produced annually in Indonesia alone under B40 mandate — world's largest by blending volume
bioenergy potential per year across five major ASEAN countries — capable of replacing 2.8 EJ of fossil fuels
Southeast Asia can achieve strong progress from a clear focus on bioenergy. Here are a few examples, and this is only the beginning of what home-grown solutions can accomplish.
smallholder farmers directly benefit from biodiesel demand in Indonesia alone, with guaranteed income through the BPDP-KS levy fund
of palm oil per year absorbed by Indonesia's B40 biodiesel mandate — directly cutting diesel import dependency and boosting domestic agricultural value chains
CO₂ reduction annually by 2050 across five major nations in Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia has everything it needs to fuel its own future. By harnessing biosolutions, we can turn the region's vast agricultural wealth into lasting energy independence, economic value and a stronger competitive position for generations to come.
Lensey Chen
Regional President, Novonesis APAC
Senior Vice President, Food & Health Biosolutions
Discover how biosolutions can help Southeast Asian biodiesel producers unlock feedstock optionality.
See the impact in our biodiesel case study.
In a world of increasing volatility, resilience begins at home. For Southeast Asia, reducing dependency on Middle Eastern oil and imported inputs is not only an environmental goal — it's an economic and security imperative.
Southeast Asia imports over 60% of its crude oil from the Middle East — yet across the region, millions of hectares of cassava, sugarcane, and palm plantations already grow the answer. In 2026, governments from Vietnam to Indonesia made the connection: accelerate national bioethanol and biodiesel mandates and turn domestic crops into domestic fuel.
Biosolutions make this more efficient — producing more bioethanol and biodiesel from the same crops, cutting import costs, and boosting farmer incomes across the region in the same move.
Southeast Asia is becoming a net LNG importer and Thailand alone could see LNG make up over 60% of its power generation by the mid-2030s. Much of that gas is imported from the Middle East.
Yet Indonesia and Malaysia's palm oil mills produce enormous quantities of effluent (POME) that can be converted directly into biogas — enough to produce 32–100 PJ of energy per year, replacing significant LNG imports. Biosolutions can increase biogas yield from POME by at least 10%, with higher methane purity.
Southeast Asia's livestock sector runs on imported feed. Thailand brings in 60% of its soybean meal, Indonesia 85%, Vietnam 70% — millions of tonnes every year, priced in dollars and vulnerable to supply shocks.*
Biosolutions offer a way to get more from what the region already grows. Probiotics and feed enzymes improve feed conversion efficiency in poultry, cattle and swine — meaning farmers get better yields from the same inputs. Silage inoculants preserve the quality of locally grown biomass, reducing the need for imported processed feed.*
Less dependence on global feed markets. Healthier livestock. Stronger margins for farmers.
Everyday goods like packaging, textiles and cleaning products rely on petrochemical inputs. Across Southeast Asia, many of these are imported, creating dependency within industries and supply chains.
Biosolutions offer a better way. Using biological processes and renewable local feedstocks, they cut reliance on fossil-based materials without compromising performance. In a region with fast-growing export industries, the opportunities extend beyond resilience and sustainability. Businesses that make the shift can gain a competitive edge in global markets:
A smarter, stronger industry starts here.
The region imports more than two thirds of its fertilizer from outside with Thailand alone sourcing 71% of its urea from the Middle East. When global supply chains are disrupted, farmers across Southeast Asia pay the price through higher input costs and lower yields.*
Biofertilizers and biostimulants offer a home-grown alternative. Rather than replacing fertilizer entirely, they help crops absorb nutrients more efficiently, meaning farmers can achieve higher yields with the same amount, or less. Less spent on imports. More produced from local land.*
Stronger harvests. Lower input costs. A food supply built on resources Southeast Asia already has.
With biosolutions there are more opportunities to turn volatile raw materials into consistent, high-quality output — extending freshness and reducing waste through bioprotection. The result: more food from the same inputs, with less lost along the way.
With the right policies and investments in place, €877 billion could be generated by biosolutions output globally. Sign up to be among the first to get a report on the potential for your region as soon as the country specific reports are launched.
Explore this issue of the Biosolution Bulletin that explains how the dark, thick liquid extracted from wells dug deep into the Earth until now has powered our cars, fueled our aero planes and kept our ships moving across the oceans — and how biology is now changing the game.
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Review the data and research behind Southeast Asia's transition to biosolutions.