The Jakarta administration has started bulding the first refuse-derived fuel (RDF) facility on a 7.8-hectare site in Rorotan, North Jakarta, to address the city’s growing waste problem. The RDF plant will process 2,500 tonnes of waste per day. Jakarta produces nearly 8,000 tonnes of waste daily, most of which goes to the Bantar Gebang landfill.
The project has a budget of Rp 1.2 trillion ($74.89 million) from Jakarta’s 2024 regional budget, with completion expected by December 2024 and operation starting early next year. RDF plants convert waste into small pellets used as alternative fuel in cement plants or coal-fired power plants. The Rototan facility aims to produce around 875 tonnes of alternative fuel daily at full capacity.
Jakarta’s first RDF facility was established at Bantar Gebang landfill in 2022 and processes around 2,000 tones of waste daily. The new RDF plant aims to cut the waste sent to Bantar Gebang by 20% in the near future. The city canceled the plan to build a waste-to-energy (WTE) incinerator in Sunter due to high costs and other issues, deciding to focus on RDF instead.
Jakarta Envinronment Agency head Asep Kuswanto argued that RDF is a cheaper alternative with potential revenue from selling alternative fuel to industries.