Through YBLL, Pertamina Provides 10 Bamboo Bicycles for ASEAN Heads of State

West Manggarai, May 12, 2022 – Ten Heads of State attending the ASEAN SUMMIT 2023 will receive bamboo bicycles as souvenirs, specially prepared by Pertamina through the Sustainable Bamboo Foundation (YBLL).

These ten bamboo bicycles are mini velo type and named Spedagi Rodacilik 02, weighing 13 kg and equipped with a hydraulic disc-brake system.

VP of Corporate Communication of Pertamina, Fadjar Djoko Santoso, stated that bamboo is a natural resource of Flores that should be developed to provide added value and enhance the community’s well-being. Furthermore, besides being souvenirs, bamboo bicycles also represent a symbol of future eco-friendly transportation.

"We want to show the international community that Indonesia possesses abundant natural resources to support the energy transition towards clean energy," said Fadjar.

Fadjar added that the durability of Spedagi bamboo bicycles is beyond doubt. These bamboo bicycles have already covered routes such as 1,200 km in Paris-Brest-Paris Randonneur (2019), 1,500 km in Bentang Jawa (2021), Journey from Zero: Banda Aceh-Denpasar (2022), and 2,400 km in Gowes Lestari: Jakarta-Turetogo (2023).

"All bicycles are assembled at the Spedagi workshop in Temanggung, Central Java, using high-quality bamboo harvested from 7 districts in Flores," added Fadjar.

Spedagi Rodacilik 02 is designed by Singgih S Kartono, a product designer who has won various international awards. Previously, Singgih has also created Spedagi Dalanrata (road bike), Spedagi Gowesmulyo (joy bike), and Spedagi GoRo prepared for the G20 Summit in Bali in 2022.

The bamboo used as raw material for Spedagi Rodacilik 02 is sourced from villages supported by YBLL. Since 2020, YBLL has been assisting 388 Bamboo Mothers in 21 villages in Flores for bamboo cultivation and planting. They have successfully produced 2.5 million seedlings and planted 1.3 million bamboo plants.

Funded by the Provincial Government of NTT, the program aims to provide adequate bamboo supply for ecological programs (land restoration and water source protection) as well as economically valuable programs (bamboo craft and village-based bamboo construction industry).

In addition to the 10 Spedagi Rodacilik 02 bicycles, YBLL also flew 20 other bamboo bicycles to Labuan Bajo. These bicycles will be displayed at the bamboo product exhibition and during the Fajar and Senja Gowes events held daily from May 7-11, 2023, at the Waterfront Marina area.

"May these bamboo bicycles become renowned worldwide and find an expanding market on the international stage, particularly within the ASEAN region," emphasized Fadjar.**