MGRO OPERATES INTEGRATED SUSTAINABLE PALM AGRO-INDUSTRY PROJECT IN RIAU
10 June 2024
PT Intan Sejati Andalan (ISA), a subsidiary of PT Mahkota Group Tbk. (MGRO) this year began operating a 25-hectare oil palm Integrated Sustainable Agro Industry area at the Duri 13 mill site, Solapan, Bengkalis Regency, Riau.
Mahkota Group directs at least 30% of its investment development funds for the development of green projects in the hope of developing as an efficient, profitable, and environmentally friendly company in the palm oil agroindustry sector.
Mahkota Group Operations Director Fuad Halimoen said that his party began to produce economic added value from the management of liquid and solid waste from the operational process of the factory in Duri 13. The waste is converted into a number of new commodities such as fertilizer (solid waste) to renewable energy (liquid waste) to supply energy and fuel needs in the operation of a number of factories in the region.
“The environmentally friendly agro-industrial area in Duri has ISO Quality Management, ISO Environmental Management, and ISO Anti-bribery Management. In addition to a palm oil mill, our integrated area also has a kernel crushing plant (KCP), a refinery plant, a palm kernel expeller (PKE) plant, and an installation for biogas is being built there,” Halimoen told Bisnis in Medan on Friday (31/5).
Halimoen said that the company is developing an agro-industrial area to create an integrated and sustainable palm oil processing ecosystem. The area that combines business, sustainable concepts, energy efficiency, renewable energy, and minimal carbon emissions is in line with the company's vision and mission.
Environmental factors are currently the main concern of Mahkota Group which is considered to open up new opportunities to escalate its business while still running their main business in processing palm oil and its derivatives.
A number of green-oriented projects in the Duri 13 Integrated and Sustainable Agroindustry Area are set to be implemented this year. Halimoen said the company uses waste management technology that prioritizes the principle of zero waste to support sustainable palm oil industry practices. In addition to added value, this commitment also minimizes the use of fossil fuels.
It is known that the Duri 13 Integrated Agroindustry Area currently processes around 1,200 tons of fresh fruit bunches (FFB) per day, producing around 240 tons of empty fruit bunch waste (tankos) and around 60% liquid waste.
Liquid waste management in the area is carried out by Mahkota by building a biogas plant to capture methane gas produced by waste from its palm oil processing plant. Gas that is categorized as hazardous and toxic or B3 will be processed in a process tank to be purified. New renewable energy (EBT) in the form of biogas produced from the purification process is then used as fuel for their boiler machines.
Cut Solar Fuel Costs & Earn Carbon Credits
The use of additional energy from biogas, Halimoen said, has the potential to save the company’s expenditure on the purchase of fossil fuels, which has been costing around IDR 2-3 billion per month
Liquid waste management in the area is carried out by Mahkota by building a biogas plant to capture methane gas produced by waste from its palm oil processing plant. Gas that is categorized as hazardous and toxic or B3 will be processed in a process tank to be purified. New renewable energy (EBT) in the form of biogas produced from the purification process is then used as fuel for their boiler machines.
Halimoen said that solid waste from palm oil tankos has indeed been used as organic fertilizer. However, the processing of tankos by burning in a furnace causes side effects in the form of smoke.
Upholding a sustainable industry that emphasizes the environment, Mahkota Group seeks to reduce carbon emissions to below the allowable standard. The processing of tankos into organic fertilizer (fortified organic fertilizer plant) called Halimoen is now carried out through a drying mechanism and mixed with a kind of solid in the hope of reducing air pollution caused by the combustion process.
Efforts to reduce emissions from the development of environmentally friendly projects in the Sustainable and Integrated Agroindustry Area are expected by Mahkota to produce carbon credits that can be traded to companies in need. The carbon credit potential of the area is estimated at more than 90 thousand tons.
“The goal of our project is primarily environmental. Secondly, carbon credits, which is also a potential to improve the company's performance from carbon trading,” Halimoen said.
Halimoen revealed that the green project in the Integrated Sustainable Agro Industry Duri 13 area will be developed in stages. In the future, Mahkota Group will also build a waste water treatment plant, solvent extraction plant, and an oleochemical factory.