To Curb LPG Imports, PTBA to Supply 1.4 Million Tonnes of DME per Year
PT Bukit Asam Tbk (PTBA) has revealed that its newly groundbreaking coal downstreaming project into dimethyl ether (DME) could produce 1.4 million tonnes of DME per year. One of its aims is to reduce the national reliance on Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) imports.
The project, located in Tanjung Enim, is a collaboration between the Mining SOE Holding MIND ID, PT Bukit Asam Tbk (PTBA), and PT Pertamina (Persero). The inaugurated project, along with 12 others, has been designated as a Strategic National Project (PSN) in line with the vision of Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto.
PTBA’s Director of Downstreaming and Product Diversification, Turino Yulianto, explained that the project represents a step towards the industrialisation of coal mining in Indonesia. Moreover, the LPG substitution project could cut LPG imports by up to 1 million tonnes per year.
“Ladies and gentlemen, this project holds significant importance as it is included in the strategic national projects, with a capacity of 1.4 million tonnes of DME, equivalent to around 1 million tonnes of LPG,” he stated during the project inauguration in Tanjung Enim on Wednesday (29/4/2026).
In the future, the processing facility will handle approximately 7 million tonnes of coal per year, all sourced from the Tanjung Enim mine. PTBA is optimising the use of low-calorific coal that has not been maximally utilised domestically until now.
“We are processing low-rank coal, which is coal that has not been utilised so far, and there is a lot of it in Indonesia. So, once this project runs, God willing, if it continues to develop, we can utilise low-rank coal in Indonesia,” he clarified.
On the other hand, Pertamina will act as the absorber (offtaker) of the DME product for distribution to the public. This shift from LPG to DME is expected to save foreign exchange that has been drained by gas fuel imports.
“This DME is intended to be absorbed by Patraniaga, Pertamina. Thank you, Ms Ema, for absorbing our product and, God willing, substituting the LPG that has been imported so far. So, this is a project to strengthen national energy resilience,” he elaborated.
The downstreaming plant is located within the 585-hectare Bukit Asam Industrial Estate (Beki) in Muara Enim, South Sumatra. The energy supply for the plant’s operations is supported by the Sumsel 8 PLTU with a capacity of 2x660 MW, which is Southeast Asia’s largest mine-mouth power plant with environmentally friendly technology.
In addition to its energy impact, this mega project is projected to absorb 5,380 workers, comprising 4,300 during the construction phase and 1,010 during the operational phase. The company is committed to prioritising the absorption of local workers from areas around the mine, such as Muara Enim and Lahat.
Besides DME development, PTBA is also initiating various other downstreaming projects, such as processing coal into pipeline gas (SNG) for industrial needs, and processing coal into liquid fuel (diesel fuel) in the form of petrol and diesel. The company has also launched potassium humate products to improve soil fertility in support of national food security.