JAKARTA: President Prabowo Subianto broke ground on 13 natural resource processing projects in a simultaneous kickoff on Wednesday, marking the second time the administration has launched such an initiative, with a total planned investment of around 116 trillion rupiah.
The projects, spanning the energy, mineral and agricultural sectors, form part of the government’s push to accelerate its downstream industrialisation drive in a bid to increase the added value of commodity exports and strengthen energy security.
“We do not want to simply export raw materials.
“We want to process them domestically so the added value is enjoyed by the people,” Prabowo said in his opening speech at state energy firm Pertamina’s oil refinery development site in Cilacap.
“For too long, our economy and natural resources have been controlled by business people whose sense of nationalism I question,” he added.
The event followed the first nationwide launch of downstream projects in February, with the government planning to roll out six additional downstream projects later this year.
Prabowo also instructed state asset fund Danantara and the downstream task force to continuously reassess project plans and adopt more efficient and cost-effective technologies where available.
“If better and cheaper technology emerges, we must be willing to adjust. Focus on the numbers.
“The most efficient solution that delivers the greatest benefit to the public is what should be pursued,” he emphasised.
Among the key downstream projects launched on Wednesday is the development of petrol refinery facilities in Cilacap and Dumai, each with a processing capacity of 62,000 barrels per day (bpd).
The refineries are expected to cut petrol imports by up to two million kiloliters annually.
Pertamina is also building fuel storage terminals in Palaran, East Kalimantan; Biak, Papua; and Maumere, East Nusa Tenggara, with a combined capacity of 153,000 kilolitres.
In the coal sector, Pertamina, together with state miner PT Bukit Asam, is developing a coal gasification project in Tanjung Enim, South Sumatra, which will convert six million tonnes of coal into 1.4 million tonnes of dimethyl ether (DME) annually.
Home to the world’s seventh-largest coal reserves, Indonesia has long sought to process low-rank coal into DME to reduce its reliance on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) imports, but past efforts stalled due to investor withdrawals.
The project’s output is expected to replace around one million tonnes of LPG imports and save the state budget about seven trillion rupiah each year.
State steelmaker PT Krakatau Steel is preparing an integrated steel project worth 30 trillion rupiah, comprising a nickel-based stainless steel plant in Morowali, Central Sulawesi, and a carbon steel slab facility in Cilegon, Banten.
Other projects include the development of a Buton asphalt ecosystem in Karawang, West Java, a copper and gold downstream processing facility in Gresik, East Java and palm oil processing into oleochemicals and biodiesel in Sei Mangkei, North Sumatra.
Additional initiatives include nutmeg processing into oleoresin and the development of an integrated coconut facility in Central Maluku, Maluku province, which will process coconuts into higher-value products such as medium-chain triglyceride oil, coconut flour and activated charcoal. — The Jakarta Post/ANN
