State-firms to raise fertilizer production

JAKARTA (JP): Two state-owned fertilizer firms, PT Pupuk Sriwijaya (Pusri) and PT Pupuk Kujang, plan to raise their stocks and production to meet the expected higher domestic consumption of fertilizer this year.

Pusri president Suhadi said in Palembang, South Sumatra, on New Years Eve that his company had built up a three-month supply of fertilizer stocks, including 567,592 tons of urea, 226,425 tons of TSP fertilizer, 78,022 tons of ZA fertilizer and 97,477 tons of KCL fertilizer.

With its newest urea plant now operating, Pusri produced 2.18 million tons of urea last year -- below its target of 2.19 million tons. Pusri sold 2.03 million tons of urea domestically and exported 190,225 tons.

The new production plant at the company's fertilizer complex in Palembang, South Sumatra, has an installed annual production capacity of 570,000 tons. The plant produced 517,234 tons last year.

Pupuk Kujang in Cikampek, West Java, hopes to produce 587,000 tons of urea this year, down from its 596.425-ton output last year. It also hopes to produce 383,000 tons of ammonia this year, down from 383,559 tons last year.

The company's president, Edi Madnawidjaja, was quoted by Antara as saying that last year's output of both urea and ammonia had exceeded the plant's capacity.

To anticipate growing demand for fertilizers, Pupuk Kujang plans to raise its production capacity to increase its output to 1.14 million tons a year by the year 2000.

He said a tender for the expansion project would be called later this month. Construction would start later this year and was expected to be completed by 2000, when it was expected to begin operating.

The government has told the state-owned fertilizer producers to increase their production capacity to help sustain the country's self-sufficiency in rice.

Indonesia, which became self sufficient in rice in early 1980, started to import rice again in the early 1990s.

Last year, Indonesia was struck by a fertilizer shortage which prompted the government to simplify its distribution network. (rid)