Firm to extract gas from garbage

JAKARTA (JP): A private firm has submitted a proposal to municipal authorities which, if approved, could see gas being extracted at the 108-hectare Bantargebang rubbish dump in Bekasi, 40 kilometers west of Jakarta.

A golf course would then be developed on the vacant site, according to the president of PT Suar Bhumi Tirta Pratama, Bambang Tri Budiman, whose company submitted the proposal.

The biogas project, costing US$55 million, could supply 10 megawatts of power to state-owned PLN electricity company and neighboring industries.

Ninety percent of the project is to be financed through a soft loan from a Danish bank. "The bank expressed their commitment after learning that the project is environmentally friendly", Bambang told reporters after submitting the proposal to Governor Sutiyoso Thursday.

Bambang said that the governor had given a green light to the project after learning of the details, claiming that "the governor hopes to see the project realized as soon as possible". Sutiyoso could not be reached for further confirmation.

The project will develop in stages, under a 50 year build- operate-transfer system.

Bambang explained that PT Suar Bhumi planned to divide the dump into five zones. The first and second zones will be developed in the first 10 year stage of the project, at a cost of $16 million. He proposed that later stages of the project also be handled by his company.

After 20 years, enough land will be available at the Bekasi site to develop a golf course and greenbelt area, Bambang estimated.

Gas found in the site, methane resulting from the natural decomposition of organic waste, will be extracted using Danish technology and converted into energy. Thirty-five percent of the gas will be turned into electrical power and 55 percent into heat, which can be used for other purposes, Bambang said.

He hopes that gas extraction will start at site shortly after completing the first stage of the project. Bambang proposes that electricity generation be jointly handled by his company and the city's health agency.

The project will also hire 100 scavengers and local residents to operate turbines, which are used to extract the waste. "In another words, the project will create jobs for the people", he said. (ind)