press release PT CPI, duri and the local community

Duri is a small town in the Mandau subdistrict of Bengkalis Regency in Riau Province. Covering an area of 930 km2 (360 sq mi), Duri is roughly half the size of Dumai and located 130 km (80 mi) from Pekanbaru, Riau’s capital. Duri has approximately 256,000 residents.

As one of the main contributors to Indonesia’s crude oil production, Duri is of national importance. Incomes at both the district and national levels rely on crude oil production from Duri Field, which is part of the Rokan Block operated by PT. Chevron Pacific Indonesia (PT CPI), formerly known as Caltex.

Discovery of the Duri Field in 1941 by Caltex stimulated growth in Riau, Bengkalis and especially Duri. Progress continued with the discovery of the Minas Field in 1944. With PT CPI’s capability and technology, both fields were continually developed and became the backbone of oil production in Indonesia.

Crude oil produced in Duri Field is simply called Duri crude. This field remains productive through use of steamflood technology, which has both extended Duri Field’s life span and maintained its production levels.

Duri’s community development and economy are inseparable from the pulse of oil production activities. In the 1950s, People’s School, or Sekolah Rakyat (SR), was built. Muhammad Yatim started at the school when he was 23. Yatim is now 83 and a leader in the Sakai tribe, which has a long-established community on the outskirts of Riau sustained by a combination of nomadic and agricultural practices.

“The majority of the students in Sekolah Rakyat were migrants,” reminisced Yatim, adding that the school was built roughly four years after Caltex arrived. He said that the school is now a public fuel station, or stasiun pengisian bahan bakar umum (SPBU), close to the Mandau subdistrict office. After graduating from SR, Yatim moved on to junior high school, or Sekolah Menengah Pertama (SMP). At the time, Duri had only two private SMPs, Setiawan SMP (now SMP Negeri 4) and Santo Yosef SMP.

As PT CPI operations progressed, people from other parts of Indonesia moved to Duri. Many wanted to work for PT CPI while others came to work in trading businesses.

Duri’s evolution is inseparable from advancement among the local and tribal communities. PT CPI’s enduring commitment to community empowerment helped the Sakai tribe, for example, participate in many cultural events in Jakarta, performing the lukah gilo dance and others. In addition, the Sakai community was helped to settle in permanent housing near roads to water resources or rivers.

Yatim was introduced to PT CPI when the Sakai community was involved in Pekanbaru’s Asia Pacific Native Tribe Cultural and Art Festival in 1991. After the introduction, PT CPI then built a traditional Sakai tribal house and helped to introduce Sakai art and culture to PT CPI family members. PT CPI also gave scholarships to Sakai children.

With scholarship aid from PT CPI, Yatim said, Sakai children receive education that puts them on equal footing with other tribes in Indonesia. Approximately 2,000 Sakai children have been awarded scholarships from PT CPI.

Education empowerment

The education level continues to increase in the local community and Sakai tribe through various community empowerment programs operated by PT CPI. “This company is attentive toward human resource empowerment,” said Muhammad Nasir, who was born in Duri and is chief of the Sakai tribe. “Education has been their big priority. The education of many Sakai children has been financed by PT CPI to the level of master’s degree. After they graduate from SMA (high school) or university, we welcome them back to the village with an upah-upah and tepung tawar ceremony. We display their photos in the Sakai tribal house.”

Sakai villagers now empower themselves outside their village. They pursue a variety of professions and business opportunities. Others develop their skills in their own hometown through agriculture and livestock breeding. Formerly known for being dependent on the forest to live, the Sakai tribe is adapting to the changes around them.

PT CPI’s community empowerment program focuses on training to improve skills and encourage independence. Nasir emphasized that PT CPI is not just helping the community gain knowledge but is also providing tools and capital. “Through this program, there are successes and failures, especially for the Sakai tribe, whose education is still far off compared to others,” Nasir said. “However, PT CPI still gives assurance that the Sakai tribe will be able to be independent and able to advance in all sectors.”

In 1954, Duri Field started production. For smoother operations and delivery of oil to Dumai harbor, PT CPI built a 57 km (35 mi) road and pipe system between Duri and Dumai. The road and pipe system were completed in 1958, followed by construction of a pontoon bridge in 1959 that connected Pekanbaru from north to south over the Siak River. Driving between Padang on the west coast to Dumai on the east coast was now possible. With the bridge opening up traffic through central Sumatra, towns along the east coast began to grow, especially Duri and Dumai. Caltex replaced the pontoon bridge with a permanent structure in 1977.

Oil road

“Because of Caltex (PT CPI) operations in Duri, the town developed quickly,” Nasir said. “All layers of the community came from different directions, resulting in major impacts to the territory and community’s economy.

Infrastructure in Duri grew too, Nasir continued, including road access, schools, government offices, bridges, religious facilities and housing for tribes. “The oil road was built by PT CPI to expedite operational activities,” said Nasir. “Recently the oil road was asphalted and is now a national road managed by government.”

Before some areas of Riau were developed, Duri already knew about the oil road. Of course, that was before the current asphalt road existed. The oil road was made by hardening the soil with a layer of crude oil. “The oil road’s characteristics are imprinted in my memory and those of others who have lived and were raised in Duri town,” said Nasir.

Facility and infrastructure

In 1960, two years after the structuring of Riau, Duri became the capital of the Mandau subdistrict. The subdistrict’s office was first at Pokok Jengkol, now the location of Batang Serosa head village office and Religious Matters Office, or Kantor Urusan Agama (KUA). In 1977, the Mandau subdistrict office moved to its current location at Jalan Sudirman No. 56 Duri.

In 2003, the Mandau subdistrict was reorganized into two subdistricts, Mandau and Pinggir. The Pinggir subdistrict’s economic center is Sebanga, which serves as an entrance to Duri from the Pekanbaru-Dumai main road.

In 2017, Mandau reorganized again to form the Mandau and Bathin Solapan subdistricts. In addition, Pinggir became the Talang Muandau subdistrict.

Duri has three activity centers, Simpang Market (or Pasar Simpang at Jalan Sudirman), Hang Tuah Road (or Jalan Hang Tuah) and Sebanga Street. Simpang Market is the central market area and is surrounded by independent midsize shopping centers, Ramayana grocery store and Mandau City Mall (Mancy). The vicinity also includes a post office, district office equipped with a Bathin Batuah meeting hall, public health center, area public hospital (or Rumah Sakit Umum Daerah, RSUD), bistros, restaurants, library, hotels, banks and bookshops.

Jalan Hang Tuah, which once served as a residential center, is now filled with shophouses. Public 2 High School, or SMA Negeri 2, is at the Polok Jengkol crossroads. Sebanga Street was once home to Duri’s central bus terminal, with destinations toward Pekanbaru and West Sumatra. In the beginning there were many ticket counters, repair workshops, rest areas and crowds. Currently, economic activity is slowly moving toward Simpang Market. More people are traveling in vehicles that are not tied to the terminal than by bus.

From a livelihood perspective, the community is diversified. Residents are no longer dependent on oil production. According to Mandau subdistrict leader Riki Rihadi, plantation farming is the top agriculture sector in the subdistrict, especially for rubber and palm oil.