AEP announced that the first commercial BioCNG/Biomethane plant in Indonesia, located at Blankahan Palm Oil Mill, Blankahan Village, Kuala District, Langkat Regency, North Sumatera Province, is now fully operational. This BioCNG Plant has an installed capacity to process 1,500 m 3 Biogas/hour or 19,000 m3 Biogas/day which is equivalent to 760 MMBTU/day. The Biogas Plant uses palm oil mill effluent as a feedstock and under normal operation produces 775 m3 Biogas/hour.

The BioCNG Plant will purify the biogas to increase the methane content and produce about 9,800 m3 BioCNG/day equivalent to 365 MMBTU/day". The mitigation of emission of methane gas will result in an estimated reduction of 52,000 MT of CO2 per year which can generate 52,000 carbon credits per year. Going forward, an additional Biogas Plant using empty Fruit Bunches as a feedstock will be installed at the Blankahan site which will increase the BioCNG production to full capacity of 760 MMBTU/day.

This is a joint venture between AEP and Knowledge Integration Services ("KIS"), in which the bulk of the costs of building the plant have been borne by KIS. AEP will receive payments from KIS for methane gas generated to produce BioCNG which is sold to Buyers who will replace their fossil fuels with this renewable BioCNG. AEP will also share 45% from the sale of carbon credits.

KIS will operate the BioCNG plant for 15 years, after which AEP will take over the total operation and ownership of the plant without any further revenue sharing with KIS. AEP has also entered into a separate contract with KIS for the construction of a second BioCNG plant at the Tasik Raja Palm Oil Mill in Torganda District, Labuhan Batu Regency, North Sumater a Province which provides for similar revenue sharing arrangements, with operation and ownership of the plant also reverting to AEP after 15 years. AEP believes that these joint venture arrangements with KIS serve to demonstrate its commitment to reducing carbon emissions in line with AEP's ESG obligations.