Acetic acid firm expands to meet domestic demand
Acetic acid firm expands to meet domestic demand
SURAKARTA, Central Java (JP): The country's first acetic acid
manufacturer, PT Indo Acidatama Chemical Industry, has increased
its production capacity by 50 percent to 33,000 tons per annum to
help satisfy domestic demand.
Minister of Industry Tunky Ariwibowo inaugurated the company's
expanded operation in a ceremony here yesterday.
Tunky said the new plant, which cost Indo Acidatama Rp 47
billion (US$21.36 million) to build, would help the country
reduce its foreign exchange spending on imports by $32 million
annually.
"With this expanded unit in operation, Indonesia needn't
import acetic acid anymore for the production of purified
terephthalic acid (PTA), a chemical substance used for polyester
production," Tunky said at the ceremony, which was also attended
by Director General of Chemical Industry Sujata and the company's
chief commissioner, Sudwikatmono.
Minister Tunky called on private investors to follow the lead
of Indo Acidatama in developing industries which took advantage
of the country's strength in the availability of natural
resources.
"There are still plenty of opportunities to build industrial
plants which process the country's primary commodities such as
natural rubber, crude palm oil and molasses," Tunky said.
He added that industrial plants processing agricultural
commodities would face only light competition abroad when they
exported their products, because not so many countries in the
world had the same raw materials that Indonesia has.
Added value
He said that Indonesia's primary agricultural commodities had,
to date, mostly been directly exported. "Why don't we increase
their value before exporting them to generate higher revenues?"
Citing Indo Acidatama as an example, Tunky said the company
bought molasses -- a raw material for acetic acid production --
from sugar factories in Central and East Java at $70 per ton and
sold its ascetic acid for $700 per ton.
In addition to acetic acid, Indo Acidatama also produces
ethanol and ethyl acetate. Ethanol is an important ingredient in
beverages, cosmetics, cigarettes and some medicines, while ethyl
acetate -- a combination of ethanol and acetic acid -- is for the
production of plastics.
Sudwikatmono said the company was preparing to float 20
percent of its shares on the Jakarta Stock Exchange later this
year. However, he refused to disclose how many shares would be
offered to the public, saying only that the company expected to
raise some Rp 50 billion from its public offering.
He said that he was planning to build a new plant in
Tangerang, West Java, to process acetic acid from into PTA.
"Our textile companies are currently still importing a
significant amount of PTA. So, as a businessman, why don't I take
advantage of this good opportunity?," Sudwikatmono said. (rid)