Pertamina promotes green energy use in waste management

State-owned PT Pertamina is encouraging the public, especially the academic community and industry, to develop and begin using environmentally friendly or green energy in waste processing, particularly in coastal or water areas. Pertamina Chief Commissioner Mochamad Iriawan said that the current trash skimmer vessel pilot project, a collaboration between Pertamina and the Sepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology (ITS) Surabaya, has the potential to use cheaper and more environmentally friendly solar power. “So it is hoped that the research can be deepened in future, because perhaps currently the power for the trash skimmer vessel still comes from petrol, from fuel, and we will switch it to solar power, bearing in mind that here in Indonesia sunlight can be utilised,” Iriawan said in Badung, Bali, on Wednesday. The trash skimmer vessel will operate in the waters around The Patra Bali Resort & Villas in Badung Regency, Bali; the Ngurah Rai Aviation Fuel Terminal in Bali; and the Kotabaru Oil Fuel Terminal operational area in South Kalimantan. Iriawan hopes the technological innovation developed by Pertamina and ITS can become an innovative solution for collecting floating waste more effectively, efficiently and safely. Similarly, Pertamina Commissioner Hasan Nasbi said the company strongly supports the development of environmentally friendly technology so it can be widely utilised by the community, especially around the company’s operational areas. “The team will later think about how the energy can also be more environmentally friendly. Earlier, Professor Sjarief Widjaja, a senior lecturer in the ITS Naval Architecture Department, also said that the research will be developed further so that the power can come from solar energy or by using batteries,” Hasan said. Specifically for waste management in coastal areas, Hasan assessed that this aligns with the implementation of Pertamina’s environmental, social and governance values through the use of environmentally friendly technology for water waste management. “So with Pertamina’s effort, it is hoped that in future it can develop so that various beautiful beaches in Indonesia that sell tourism can be completely clean of waste,” he said. Meanwhile, in the initial phase of the trash skimmer vessel pilot project, Pertamina is targeting a reduction in coastal waste volume around the operational areas of The Patra Bali Resort & Villas and the Ngurah Rai Aviation Fuel Terminal of around 1 tonne per year. Furthermore, for the Kotabaru Oil Fuel Terminal operational area, specifically in Semayap Village and Rampa Village in Kalimantan, this programme is targeted to help reduce coastal waste generation by up to around 20 tonnes per year.