Gaung NTB Daily Newspaper – Thursday, 2 August 2012

Sumbawa Besar, Gaung NTB – Domestic Biogas (BIRU) Program is soon to be developed at Sumbawa Regency. This program is a collaboration between the Government of Indonesia and the Netherland which is implemented through the Directorateg General of New and Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation (DJEBTKE) of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources as the representative of Indonesia and HIVOS Regional Office Southeast Asia (ROSEA) as the representative of the Netherland supported by SNV Netherland, as the technical advisor.

“The purpose of this program is to disseminate biogas as the source of eco-friendly new energy, renewable and sustainable as the basis for market-oriented commercial sector development,” explained Amir M A Allo, the Director of Yayasan PilaH Sumbawa, to Gaung NTB, yesterday. PilaH itself is a CPO of the program.

According to him, BIRU Program at West Nusa Tenggara area has been initiated in Lombok Island since August 2010. The program has successfully build 209 digesters as of June 2012.

Amir explained, that in 2012, the local government of West Nusa Tenggara Province and Hivos estabished a collaboration to develop Domestic Biogas Program hence to synergize more with Bumi Sejuta Sapi (BSS)/The Land of a Million Cows which is a flagship program of West Nusa Tenggara Province local administrative. The commitment built upon the collaboration is in the form of a support to build 1,000 units of domestic biogas reactors, comprising of 900 units in Lombok area and 100 units in Sumbawa area. “The MoU was signed on 10 February 2012,” he uttered.

To develop BIRU program, quality construction workers and supervisors are needed which are in charge to build biogas reactors in accordance with BIRU standards. (Gam)