JAKARTA, Sept. 1 (Xinhua) -- For Rosita Sudarti, a 59-year-old villager from Tegalreja in Cilacap regency, Central Java province, cooking has taken on new meaning. She now enjoys collecting the waste from her used cooking oil (UCO), knowing it can generate extra income instead of polluting the environment.
Many villagers in Tegalreja have adopted the same practice, selling their UCO to Beo Asri Waste Bank, which partners with Indonesia's state-owned oil company PT Pertamina to reprocess the waste into biofuel for aircraft.
Indonesia has for the first time successfully converted UCO into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), marking a milestone in the country's waste management and alternative energy journey. Domestic carrier Pelita Air has already begun using the UCO-based biofuel on its Jakarta-Bali flights.
"Usually before, we would just throw it in the garbage or the nearby river, which polluted the environment. But now we can collect it and earn money from it," Sudarti told Xinhua in a recent phone interview. She said she can earn about 7,000 rupiahs (0.43 U.S. dollars) per kilogram of UCO, packed in bottles.
The collected UCO is absorbed by Pertamina Kilang Internasional (KPI) and processed at the RU IV Cilacap refinery. KPI Operations Director Didik Bahagia said on Friday that, for now, SAF production is limited to the Cilacap facility, but plants in Dumai, Riau province, and Balongan, West Java province, are targeted to join next year.
"We expect to process up to 38,566 kilolitres of UCO per year, with a production potential of 1,236,146 kilolitres. With that, we can meet domestic demand for SAF and even explore export opportunities," Bahagia said, adding that Indonesia is the first country in Southeast Asia to produce such fuel.
PT Pertamina's Vice President of Corporate Communication, Fadjar Djoko Santoso, said Tuesday that the company had established UCO collection points at 35 fuel stations in major cities, including Jakarta, Bandung and Surabaya.
"People who want to sell their UCO can come to the nearest collection point. The price is on average 5,000 to 5,500 rupiahs (0.30 to 0.33 dollars) per litre. So, please feel free to sell your UCO," Santoso said.
Turning everyday kitchen waste into biofuel not only cuts carbon emissions in aviation, one of the hardest sectors to decarbonize, but also stimulates a domestic circular economy. It is part of Indonesia's broader strategy to green transport fuels and reach its net-zero emissions target.
Chairman of the Indonesian UCO Collectors Association for Renewable Energy, Matias Tumanggor, noted that Indonesia has significant UCO potential, while a study by Traction Energy Asia estimates that Indonesia could produce 2 million kilolitres of UCO annually, sourced from households, street vendors, restaurants, and the food industry.
Dadan Kusdiana, secretary general of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, said SAF made from UCO could reduce carbon emissions by up to 84 percent compared with fossil-based jet fuel.
He stressed that SAF is a breakthrough opportunity for aviation to reduce its carbon footprint without compromising safety or performance.
"Today's momentum confirms that Indonesia's clean energy transition is not just talk, but a series of practical steps, starting with harnessing bioenergy potential, integrating refinery technology, and public participation in supply. However, there remains work to be done, particularly in bioethanol development and strengthening inter-agency collaboration," Kusdiana said. ■
