Universitas Gadjah Mada
Faculty of Economics and Business

Another proud accomplishment has been achieved by the students of the Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Gadjah Mada (FEB UGM). The Solutionary team, consisting of Nurdini Hadaina Kamal (Management 2021), Putri Terang Rinjani (Management 2021), and Rohinun (Economics 2021), successfully secured second place in the Company Case - International Development Student Conference (IDSC) 2023 organized by the Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Airlangga (FEB Unair). In this competition, they were tasked with presenting ideas related to the transformation that could be undertaken by PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) (Persero) in utilizing clean and sustainable energy.

PT PLN (Persero) has set a target to achieve net-zero emissions (NZE) by 2060. One concrete step towards this goal is to convert diesel power plants (PLTD) into power plants with more sustainable energy sources. Currently, there are 5,200 PLTDs located in 2,130 different locations. Meanwhile, the target for the share of new and renewable energy (EBT) at the national level is still low, at 23 percent by 2025.

Therefore, the Solutionary team had to consider alternative solutions to the environmentally unfriendly PLTD. The competition consisted of three stages: the preliminary stage, the semifinal stage, and the final stage. In the preliminary stage (September 22nd – October 2nd, 2023), the team was asked to determine the best type of EBT and scheme, both technically and economically, to be applied in Pulau Tello, Nias Regency. Then, in the semifinal stage (October 15th – October 22nd, 2023), the team had to delve into more detailed configurations for the best hybrid implementation between PLTD and solar power plants (PLTS).

The in-depth analysis successfully propelled the Solutionary team to the final round offline from November 9th to 10th, 2023, at FEB Unair. In this final stage, the team had to implement the solutions they had offered in the previous stages, but for a case in a region other than Pulau Tello. The first day of the final round was filled with presentation sessions, while the second day included a conference. In the end, they successfully clinched the second-place title in this competition. Putri Terang Rinjani, one of the team members, expressed her feelings when she and the team were announced as winners, "Relief and pride, our struggle is finally over. We also did not expect to make it to the top two. In essence, do your best."

Putri then shared the challenges they faced during the competition. The highly technical nature of the case, involving electricity, required them to work extra hard in strategizing. "Meanwhile, our background is all from FEB. We learned a lot from this competition, especially about electrical topics," said Putri. However, during the competition, the Solutionary team received guidance from two lecturers, namely Prof. Wakhid Slamet Ciptono, MBA, MPM., Ph.D. (Lecturer in the Department of Management, FEB UGM) and Dannys Arif Kusuma, S.T., M.Eng (Lecturer in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, UGM). "Both have complementary expertise. Mr. Wakhid guided from the economic side, while Mr. Danis from the technical side."

In conclusion, Putri conveyed a message to her fellow FEB UGM students. "Participate in various competitions because, through competitions, we can learn a lot, such as frameworks that have not been discussed in classes or new insights about knowledge beyond FEB. In addition, through competitions, we can channel the knowledge we have gained in classes so far," Putri concluded.

Congratulations on the achievement, Team Solutionary!

Reportage: Rizal Farizi