Promoting Waste-to-Value through Decentralised Waste Management Project in Bandung
Pertamina New & Renewable Energy (Pertamina NRE) is strengthening its commitment to the circular economy through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at the Danantara Office, Jakarta, regarding the development of a pilot Decentralised Waste Management (DWM) project in Bandung on Monday (14/9). This project serves as an initial step towards developing integrated waste management capable of converting waste into value-added resources and energy.
The signing was attended by the Chief Technology Officer of Danantara, Sigit Perdapat Puji Santosa; the Managing Director of Technology Advancement at Danantara, Dwi Susanto; the Managing Director of Development Investment at PT Danantara Development Management Fund, M. Rachmat Kaimuddin; and the Managing Director of Legal & Corporate Affairs at PT Danantara Development Management Fund, Irawady Azwar.
Under the DWM concept, urban waste is viewed not merely as refuse to be discarded, but as a resource that can be recovered and reused. In its initial design, the facility is intended to process approximately 300 tonnes of municipal solid waste (MSW) per day through a series of mechanical sorting and material recovery processes, including bag opening, screening, magnetic separation, ballistic separation, and eddy current separation. These processes will separate materials with recycling value, organic fractions or fines, and combustible fractions for further processing.
Director of Projects & Operations at Pertamina NRE, Norman Ginting, stated that the development of DWM introduces a new paradigm in waste management by prioritising a waste-to-value approach.
“Waste should not merely be viewed as something to be disposed of, but as a resource that still holds value. Through this project, we want to encourage the transformation from waste to resource, and subsequently from waste to value. Materials that still possess value can be recovered, while fractions with energy value can be developed into alternative fuels with more controlled quality,” said Norman, as quoted on Wednesday (16/9).
From a technological perspective, DWM integrates mechanical sorting, material recovery, and fuel preparation processes. The separated combustible fraction can undergo shredding, drying, mixing, and quality control to produce Solid Recovered Fuel (SRF) with more consistent characteristics. This SRF has the potential to be used as an alternative fuel to partially replace fossil fuels, either through co-firing in power plants or for energy needs in the industrial sector.
In the concept currently under review, the combustible fraction from MSW may also be combined with rice husks to produce blended SRF, which will then be verified based on raw material characteristics, product quality, supply chain sustainability, and the requirements of potential off-takers.
“The technological value of this project lies not just in the waste processing machinery. More importantly, it is about how we build a system capable of transforming highly heterogeneous waste into more consistent, measurable, and economically valuable materials and fuels. This is what distinguishes the waste-to-value approach from conventional waste management,” Norman continued.
The success of this project will require integration throughout the value chain, ranging from the certainty of waste supply and characteristics, land and infrastructure readiness, availability of supporting materials, product quality, to the certainty of off-takers. In the initial project structure, PNRE is planned to act as both developer and operator, supported by local governments and partners in engineering, procurement and construction (EPC), technology providers, suppliers, and off-takers. Following the MoU signing, the parties will proceed with a feasibility study covering waste characteristics and supply chains, end-product specifications, rice husk supply chains, technology provider selection, technology configuration, utilities, civil works, and licensing requirements.
Pertamina NRE hopes that the DWM pilot project in Bandung can serve as a model for waste management that is technically proven, commercially viable, environmentally sustainable, and replicable for development in various cities across Indonesia.
“Our ambition does not stop at building one facility. What we want to build is a model. If Bandung can demonstrate that integrated waste management can function technically, economically, and sustainably, then this model has the potential to be replicated in various regions of Indonesia. Thus, the waste issue can be transformed into part of the energy solution as well as the circular economy,” Norman concluded.