Tulungagung is a regency in East Java Province with an area of 1,055.65 square kilometers (sqkm). In 2020, the regency's population was 1,089,775 inhabitants, with 97.03% of them were Muslims.

Meanwhile, East Java province, which capital is Surabaya, has an area of 46,428 sqkm, according to BKPM. The province offers 28 opportunities, 11 industrial centers, 6 airports, 32 ports, 248 educational facilities, 473 hotels and 344 hospitals.

The BKPM is the government institution dealing with investment coordination and implementation of policies. The board, which was founded in 1973, coordinates projects all around Indonesia. Investment Minister Bahlil Lahadalia has chaired the board since 2021.

Integrated facility

The cold storage facility project in Tulungagung has an area of 6,500 square meters and an interest rate of return (IRR) of 24.37% and a payback period of 4 years and 1 month.

The facility is integrated for fish processing and equipped with freezing facilities and a frozen warehouse. The project will then be used to process catfish from fresh meat to frozen packaging ready to be sent to the market.

The market value for catfish industry is high. According to a paper in the IOP Science, the profit of catfish farming on each planting season - between 3 and 5 months - was IDR 81,631,322. The growth rate of catfish fillets reaching 21.37% albeit the national supply could only muster about 39%.

The area that is being offered is about 5 hectares with a planned production rate of 13 tons per day and a warehouse capacity of 200 tons.

Prone to natural disasters

However, Tulungagung is prone to natural disasters especially floods and landslides. Hydrometeorology disasters such as floods and landslides are common in the regency's eight districts, according to Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG).

Dedi Eka Purnama, Head of Prevention and Preparedness of Tulungagung Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) said on January 18, 2022: "Based on the weather forecast, the potential for heavy rain and strong winds only occur in some areas in Tulungagung."

He added that the hydrometeorological disasters were caused by climate change and the destruction of nature that causes floods, landslides and strong winds.