Karawang (ANTARA) - Marine Affairs and Fisheries Minister Sakti Wahyu Trenggono said his side had modified a non-functioning shrimp cultivation pond into a pilot project model for saline tilapia cultivation ponds in Karawang, West Java.

"These are shrimp ponds that are no longer functioning properly because they are old models. (They are) people's core ponds that were built during that era (the New Order). They are contaminated with dirt and so on," he remarked in Karawang, Friday.

The minister made the statement during his visit to saline tilapia cultivation ponds in Karawang, West Java.

With a modified pond area of 80 hectares, Trenggono has projected that the capital disbursed by the government will return after operating for three years.

"It is three years (return on investment)," he remarked.

The saline tilapia pilot project model is divided into two parts, namely block A that is a production pond existing, with an area of 16 hectares consisting of 22 pond plots, and block B, with an area of 20 hectares, with 36 pond plots.

This was followed by additional development clusters, namely block C, with an area of 20.5 hectares comprising 36 plots and block B, with a total area of 23.5 hectares consisting of 56 pond plots.

The 80-hectare pond that has been utilized is projected to be able to produce 7,020 tons of production in one cycle for eight to nine months, with a target weight of each fish reaching one kilogram.

Based on the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (KKP) data, the total funds disbursed in modifying shrimp ponds into saline tilapia ponds reached Rp76.6 billion (US$4.8 million).

The cost of production (HPP) for saline tilapia is projected at Rp24,500 per kilogram (kg), while the selling price is Rp30 thousand per kg, so the profit margin obtained is Rp5,500 per kg.

With the projected harvest of saline tilapia per cycle, the total sales value reaches Rp210.6 billion (US$13.4 million), the total HPP production value at Rp171.9 billion (US$10.9 million), and profit margin is estimated to reach Rp38.61 billion (US$2.4 million).

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Translator: Sinta Ambarwati, Cindy Frishanti Octavia
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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