From a modest office in the Padang Bulan area of Medan, a team of seven runs a business whose reach spans three provinces and extends into the export market for essential oils. PT Bentang Alam Sumatera (PT BAS) was founded on January 14, 2018, building a company around aromatic commodities used by the perfume, cosmetics, personal care and aromatherapy industries.
The PT BAS name may not be widely known among the public in North Sumatra. But for patchouli farmers in Blangkejeren and Gayo Lues, or citronella and cananga farmers in Besitang, the company is the partner that takes in their harvests and connects them to buyers far beyond their own villages.
PT BAS’s story began with an ambition to build an essential oil market while also becoming a producer of agribusiness commodities, particularly in Aceh and across Sumatra. On paper, its mission is simple: to produce essential oils productively and sustainably. On the ground, that mission has gone hand in hand with efforts to build the capacity of farmers and farming groups and make better use of local resources, all while opening up market opportunities at home and abroad.
The company’s structure is small, but the division of labor is clear. Panut Hadisiswoyo is the founder and CEO, Muhammad Jamil serves as director, Mustaqim, S.Hut., M.Si. handles production and partnerships, while M. Irfany serves as agroforestry specialist. That lineup shows that PT BAS’s work does not stop at the trading desk — it reaches directly into land management further upstream.
On paper, though, PT BAS is registered as a “micro enterprise.” Its legal status is recorded under the Risk-Based Business Licensing system through a Business Identification Number (NIB) first issued in November 2018. That micro-enterprise status sits somewhat at odds with the fact that the company already runs export operations and holds an Importer Identification Number attached to its NIB.
Its business license also covers far more than trading essential oils alone. It includes plantations for aromatic and refreshment crops, trade in agricultural and forestry products, wholesale trade in coffee, tea and cocoa, agarwood cultivation, waste remediation and management, and even research and development in the natural sciences. In other words, there is still plenty of room for the company to diversify further down the road.
What sets PT BAS’s business model apart is how it builds its supply chain. Rather than controlling land on a large scale, the company relies on a network of partner farmers across Aceh, North Sumatra and West Sumatra. Supply is managed in a structured way, with a number of nature-based model sites developed in North Sumatra and Aceh. With an in-house team of only seven, PT BAS works alongside local stakeholders to build community capacity, especially among essential oil farmers, because long-term relationships and trust are the main capital for a small company with such a scattered network of suppliers.
That network is what shapes PT BAS’s portfolio: patchouli, Arabica coffee, Robusta coffee, citronella oil, lemongrass, cananga, vanilla and benzoin resin. The eight commodities bring together essential oils, coffee, spices and non-timber forest products under a single supply chain.
PT BAS’s journey from a micro enterprise in Medan Selayang to an export supply chain shows how a small team can build a business footprint far larger than its size, through partnerships, local resource management and a focus on value-added commodities.
Source: Compiled from the PT Bentang Alam Sumatera 2026 profile and Risk-Based Business Licensing (NIB) documents issued through the OSS system.