PELNI Builds Biogas Digesters for Cattle Farmers in Kupang

PELNI has built biogas digester facilities in Kupang to convert cattle waste into environmentally friendly alternative energy while empowering local farmers through its CSR program.

PT Pelayaran Nasional Indonesia (PELNI) officially inaugurated biogas digester facilities at several local cattle farms in Kupang on Wednesday (18/12). These digesters are designed to process cow manure into biogas, which can serve as an alternative energy source for household use in the community.

The development of these facilities is part of PELNI’s Corporate Social and Environmental Responsibility (CSR) program. The inauguration was attended by PELNI’s Director of Finance and Risk Management, Anik Hidayati, along with PELNI Vice President of Treasury, Fauziah Ferryna, Head of PELNI Kupang Branch, Harianto Sembiring, and several local community leaders.

In her remarks, Anik Hidayati expressed hope that the biogas facilities would provide tangible benefits to cattle farmers in Kupang who had not yet taken advantage of their livestock waste. “Kupang is one of the largest livestock-producing regions, with cattle shipped using PELNI’s livestock vessels to Jakarta,” Anik said.

Anik further noted that throughout 2024, PELNI transported 4,699 head of cattle, of which 3,779 came from Kupang and the rest from Waingapu. “Given such a large number of livestock, the amount of waste produced is also significant. This biogas initiative under our CSR program helps transform that waste into a renewable energy source,” she explained.

The biogas program is developed in collaboration with the Village Development Study Center of Brawijaya University. In addition to two residential cattle farms, digesters were also built at larger farming businesses, including CV Sinar Pelangi and UD. Terobos, to maximize the reach of the program.

PELNI Vice President of Treasury, Fauziah Ferryna, explained that each biogas facility includes a mixer unit and an airtight tank that collects gas and channels it through pipelines to nearby homes. “The cow waste is first mixed with water in the mixer. Through an anaerobic fermentation process in the sealed tank, the resulting gas can be used for gas stoves and lamps,” Ferryna said. All CSR programs by PELNI follow the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) framework adopted by the United Nations and implemented by Indonesia’s Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises, covering social, economic, environmental, and governance aspects.