Bontang
Encyclopedia
Bontang is a city on the eastern coast of the island Borneo
in Indonesia. It is in the province East Kalimantan
.
Sultanate based in Tenggarong, a city in East Kalimantan.
In 1972 the government of the Kutai regency recognized Bontang as a district, and in 1984 its status changed to town.
The major development of Bontang took place after two major companies were founded there in the 1970s, PT Badak Liquid Natural Gas and PT Pupuk Kaltim. The former was established in 1974. PT Pupuk Kaltim, a company specializing in the production of ammonia and fertilizer, followed three years later.
The town is hilly and located on an ocean estuary. It is relatively swampy, with frequent flooding, especially in its north district. There is little to no tectonic activity in Bontang. A mangrove
forest (600 ha) is located in the town. Bontang gets its fresh water from the Api-Api River.
, Makassar
, and Hong Kong.
and urea
from the area’s natural gas. The company operates three units of ammonia factory and four units of urea factory, producing 1,520,000 tons of ammonia and 2,410,000 tons of urea per year. Ammonia produced by Pupuk Kaltim is exported to countries such South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, and India, as well as used locally in Indonesia. Pupuk Kaltim is currently the largest urea-producing factory in the world.
, Vico, and Jilco, and currently produces around 22 million tons of liquefied natural gas
(LNG) per year. The majority of the LNG produced is exported to Japan.
methods of cultivating rice. It begins with the planting, moves onto harvesting and preparing the rice, and finishes with serving the rice to guests. The dance, which has several variations, is performed at the beginning of events.
There are three post-secondary institutions in Bontang, STITEK (Sekolah Tinggi Teknologi), STTIB (Sekolah Tinggi Teknik Industri Bontang), and Trunojoyo.
Students begin Nature school at age 3, continue onto to Taman Kanak-Kanak for two years, and then start Sekolah Dasar at age 6. They usually graduate from high school at age 17 or 18.
Bontang has many radio stations. Major FM radio stations include EsKa's FM 103.9 FM, RY FM 90.5 MHz, Buana FM, and Bhayangkara FM 99.5 FM.
There are two major television stations, (Publik Khatulistiwa Televisi) PKTv and LNGTv. The city is also served by stations representing every major Indonesian Network, include RCTI, Metro TV, SCTV, Trans TV, Trans 7, Indosiar, ANTV, TVRI (Public Station), TV One, and Global TV.
(owned by PKT), Taman Lestari Stadium, and Besai Berrinta Stadium.
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
in Indonesia. It is in the province East Kalimantan
East Kalimantan
East Kalimantan is the second largest Indonesian province, located on the Kalimantan region on the east of Borneo island. The resource-rich province has two major cities, Samarinda and Balikpapan...
.
History
The etymology of Bontang refers to the town’s traditional status throughout history as a humble village populated mostly by immigrants. ‘Bon’ can refer in Indonesian to ‘receipt’ and ‘tang’ to ‘debt.’ Alternately, the name of the town means group of visitors. A coastal town, Bontang was initially a settlement governed under the KutaiKutai
Kutai is the traditional name of a historic region in East Kalimantan in Indonesia on Borneo, a Dayak people of the region with a language of the same name and their historic states. Today the name is preserved in the names of three regencies in East Kalimantan, the Kutai Kartanegara Regency, the...
Sultanate based in Tenggarong, a city in East Kalimantan.
In 1972 the government of the Kutai regency recognized Bontang as a district, and in 1984 its status changed to town.
The major development of Bontang took place after two major companies were founded there in the 1970s, PT Badak Liquid Natural Gas and PT Pupuk Kaltim. The former was established in 1974. PT Pupuk Kaltim, a company specializing in the production of ammonia and fertilizer, followed three years later.
Geography
Bontang is located between 117023 LE and 117032 LE and 0001 LN and 0012 LN. It occupies an area of 497.57 km2.The town is hilly and located on an ocean estuary. It is relatively swampy, with frequent flooding, especially in its north district. There is little to no tectonic activity in Bontang. A mangrove
Mangrove
Mangroves are various kinds of trees up to medium height and shrubs that grow in saline coastal sediment habitats in the tropics and subtropics – mainly between latitudes N and S...
forest (600 ha) is located in the town. Bontang gets its fresh water from the Api-Api River.
Climate
Bontang has a tropical climate. As such there are just two seasons, dry and rainy. The dry season lasts from April until September. The rainy season starts every September and ends in April.Demography
In 2002, the population of Bontang was 105,000, and was growing at a rate of 4% per year. According to a survey done that year, there were slightly more males than females, with males accounting for 52.09% of the population. The same survey reported that the majority of people living in Bontang are young, with 42.6% of the population 19 and under, 47.3% between the ages of 20 and 44, and only 10.1% of the population over the age of 44. At the 2010 Census, the city population was enumerated at 140,787.Fishing
Despite being located on the ocean, the fishing industry in Bontang is small. It consists mainly of small-scale fish farming for consumption in Bontang and nearby cities, such as BalikpapanBalikpapan
Balikpapan is a seaport city on the eastern coast of the island of Borneo, Indonesia, in the East Kalimantan province, a resource-rich region well known for its timber, mining, and petroleum export products. Two harbors, Semayang and Kariangau , and the Sepinggan International Airport are the main...
, Makassar
Makassar
Makassar, is the provincial capital of South Sulawesi, Indonesia, and the largest city on Sulawesi Island. From 1971 to 1999, the city was named Ujung Pandang, after a precolonial fort in the city, and the two names are often used interchangeably...
, and Hong Kong.
Agriculture
Only a small portion of the land in Bontang is available and/or suitable for farming. As such, only about 4% of Bontang residents are involved in agriculture.Manufacturing
PT Pupuk Kaltim was established in 1977. It is an Indonesian government-owned fertilizer company that manufactures ammoniaAmmonia
Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . It is a colourless gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food and fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or...
and urea
Urea
Urea or carbamide is an organic compound with the chemical formula CO2. The molecule has two —NH2 groups joined by a carbonyl functional group....
from the area’s natural gas. The company operates three units of ammonia factory and four units of urea factory, producing 1,520,000 tons of ammonia and 2,410,000 tons of urea per year. Ammonia produced by Pupuk Kaltim is exported to countries such South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, and India, as well as used locally in Indonesia. Pupuk Kaltim is currently the largest urea-producing factory in the world.
Energy
PT Badak NGL was established on November 26, 1974. The company is a joint-venture of PertaminaPertamina
Pertamina is an Indonesian government-owned corporation which extracts and refines the country's oil and gas reserves. It was created in August 1968 by the merger of Pertamin and Permina...
, Vico, and Jilco, and currently produces around 22 million tons of liquefied natural gas
Liquefied natural gas
Liquefied natural gas or LNG is natural gas that has been converted temporarily to liquid form for ease of storage or transport....
(LNG) per year. The majority of the LNG produced is exported to Japan.
Mining
PT Indominco, a coal mining company, was established in 1977. It is owned by a Thai company, Banpu, and extracts up to 11 million tons of coal per year. The majority of the coal is sold to electricity companies in Japan, Korea, and Taiwan.Government
Bontang has a democratic city government. The current mayor of Bontang is H. Adi Dharma.Gantar Dance
This dance mimics motions used in traditional DayakDayak people
The Dayak or Dyak are the native people of Borneo. It is a loose term for over 200 riverine and hill-dwelling ethnic subgroups, located principally in the interior of Borneo, each with its own dialect, customs, laws, territory and culture, although common distinguishing traits are readily...
methods of cultivating rice. It begins with the planting, moves onto harvesting and preparing the rice, and finishes with serving the rice to guests. The dance, which has several variations, is performed at the beginning of events.
Perang/War Dance
This is a dance from the Dayak Kenyah tribe. It tells the story of a hero going to war and fighting his enemies. The dancers dance quickly and joyfully, shouting throughout the dance. They wear traditional Dayak Kenyah clothing, and don a shield and Mandau (a traditional Dayak sword). The dance is performed to the Sak Paku, a song played on the Sampe, a traditional instrument.Kancet Ledo/Gong Dance
This is the opposite of the War Dance. It tells the story of a beautiful, gentle girl who dances like a rice plant waving in the wind. The dancers, all women, wear traditional clothing and hold five eagle feathers in each hand; each feather represents one finger. The dance derives its name from the location: it is usually performed near a gong.Hudoq Dance
Dancers wear wooden masks carved to look like wild animals, and cover their bodies in banana or coconut leaves. It is closely related to a ceremonial dance from the Dayak Bahau and Modang tribes. The dance is thought to provide the community with the power to prevent crop destruction by animals, as well as to bless the community with fertile soil and bountiful food.Serumpai Dance
This is a traditional dance of the Dayak Benuaq tribe meant to prevent people from falling ill, and to cure those who have been bitten by mad dogs. The name of the dance is derived from one of the instruments used in it, the serumpai (a flute-like instrument).Kuyang Dance
A Dayak Belian dance, it serves to protect communities from the evil spirits that live in trees, so that if someone cuts down a tree they will not be haunted by an evil spirit.Education
There are also a variety of parochial and secular private schools.There are three post-secondary institutions in Bontang, STITEK (Sekolah Tinggi Teknologi), STTIB (Sekolah Tinggi Teknik Industri Bontang), and Trunojoyo.
Students begin Nature school at age 3, continue onto to Taman Kanak-Kanak for two years, and then start Sekolah Dasar at age 6. They usually graduate from high school at age 17 or 18.
Media
Kaltim Post (owned by Jawa Pos Group) and Tribun Kaltim (owned by Kompas-Gramedia Group) are Bontang's two major daily newspapers. Although they are printed in Balikpapan, they cover news of Bontang. The city is also served by other publications such as Jawa Pos, Kompas, Republika, Jakarta Post, and Tempo.Bontang has many radio stations. Major FM radio stations include EsKa's FM 103.9 FM, RY FM 90.5 MHz, Buana FM, and Bhayangkara FM 99.5 FM.
There are two major television stations, (Publik Khatulistiwa Televisi) PKTv and LNGTv. The city is also served by stations representing every major Indonesian Network, include RCTI, Metro TV, SCTV, Trans TV, Trans 7, Indosiar, ANTV, TVRI (Public Station), TV One, and Global TV.
Sports
Popular sports in Bontang include soccer, badminton, futsal (indoor soccer), softball, and volleyball. Soccer is by far the most prominent sport. The town has its own professional soccer club called Bontang FC (owned by the company Pupuk Kaltim past, now by the city government), which is one of only two professional clubs in East Kalimantan. Bontang has three major soccer stadiums, Mulawarman StadiumMulawarman Stadium
Mulawarman Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Bontang, Indonesia. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is used as the home stadium for Bontang FC. The stadium has a capacity of 20,000 people....
(owned by PKT), Taman Lestari Stadium, and Besai Berrinta Stadium.