Aromatic plant built

Aromatic plant built

JAKARTA (JP): State Minister of Investment and Chairman of
Investment Coordinating Board Sanyoto Sastrowardoyo has
inaugurated the construction of a US$850 million aromatic plant
by Bechtel of the United States at Arun, Aceh.

The plant project, owned by PT Humpuss Aromatic which is
controlled by Hutomo Mandala Putera, will be designed for an
annual capacity of 370,000 tons of paraxylene and 160,000 tons of
benzene.

At the ground breaking ceremony on Tuesday Sanyoto said that
both paraxylene and benzene are much needed by downstream
petrochemical plants. Paraxylene is the material for making
purified terephthalic acid (PTA) which is a basic material used
in the textile industry.

The country's need of paraxylene which is estimated at
approximately 240,000 tons per year currently is expected to
increase to 650,000 tons in the year of 2000.

The plant, slated to come on stream within three years, will
require 70,000 barrels of condensate a day from the Arun gas
field. (04)