Bumi Etam Chemical Signs FEED Contract for Coal-to-Methanol Downstreaming

PT Bumi Etam Chemical (BEC) has signed a Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) contract and an Engineering, Procurement, Construction, and Commissioning (EPCC) Framework Agreement for the development of a National Strategic Project to gasify coal into methanol in East Kutai, East Kalimantan.

“Today we signed two important agreements, namely the FEED and PDP (Process Design Package) contract, as well as the EPCC Framework Agreement,” said BEC President Director Rio Supin at the signing ceremony in Jakarta on Wednesday.

BEC is a joint venture between PT Arutmin Indonesia (Arutmin) and PT Kaltim Prima Coal (KPC), together with PT Istana Karang Laut (IKL) and China National Chemical Engineering Co., Ltd. (CNCEC).

Rio said the signing represents an important milestone in accelerating the development of the national coal downstreaming project.

The agreement marks the commencement of the basic engineering (FEED) phase as well as the preparation of the EPCC implementation framework, forming the foundation towards the construction phase of the coal-to-methanol production facility.

He said the collaboration reflects a shared commitment to developing a large-scale, integrated upstream chemical industry facility by combining expertise in engineering, procurement, construction, investment, and downstream industrial development.

“After signing this FEED, we move into the engineering stage, and hopefully before long we will enter the groundbreaking phase for the physical project in the near future,” Rio said.

The development of the Coal-To-Methanol facility by BEC forms part of the fulfilment of coal value-added obligations by Arutmin and KPC.

In addition, the project aims to support the implementation of the national downstreaming policy through the conversion of coal into methanol as a strategic raw material for various industrial sectors, including petrochemicals, manufacturing, energy, and derivative industries.