PT Sigma Utama as a company which having its business line in paint, coating and specialty chemical continues to innovate the products in line with technological developments in the coating lines. This time PT Sigma Utama developed a coating inhibitor product in collaboration with Toray International, Inc (Japan), Innovar AG, LLC (USA) and Brawijaya University, Faculty of Agriculture, Malang.
The urea coating inhibitor functions is a coating applied to increase the effectiveness of urea fertilizer application on plants to be more environment friendly whereas the greenhouse gas emissions released are lower than conventional urea fertilizer. This research activity is also driven by IFRI (Indonesia Fertilizer Research Institute) and expected that coating inhibitor product can be applied in mass production for all subsidiaries of PT Pupuk Indonesia (Persero).
The field survey of urea inhibitor efficacy test was conducted on December 8, 2023 on agricultural land located under the foothill of Mount Semeru, Lawang, Batu, Malang. The efficacy test was carried out on corn plants with a test duration of 3 months. The efficacy test was also attended by representatives of each company involved in this research program.
Through partnerships with Japan and USA, there are an export opportunities of urea fertilizer products which coated with inhibitors through Toray and Innovar network instead to fulfilling domestic demand indeed. If in the future the demand is high, PT Sigma Utama will get a license from Toray and Innovar to produce urea inhibitor coatings.