U.S. investor eyes Buton asphalt reserve
U.S. investor eyes Buton asphalt reserve
JAKARTA (JP): A U.S. investor has signed an agreement with
local firm PT Eka Karma to cooperate on developing natural
asphalt resources on Buton island, Southeast Sulawesi, the
province's governor said on Friday.
La Ode Kaimoeddin said in the provincial capital of Kendari
the product would be exported to the United States for
infrastructure projects.
Although he refused to disclose the name of the company, he
quoted it as saying that America needed 35 tons of asphalt per
year.
"If Buton could take two million tons of the U.S. market
demand, that would be very great. And that could be a starting
point for Buton to reawaken its asphalt industry," La Ode told
Antara news agency.
The country had long relied heavily on asphalt from Buton for
the construction of roads, but it was gradually replaced by
asphalt from oil refinery residue.
The governor said the island regency's onshore natural asphalt
reserve amounted to 400 million metric tons. Offshore areas are
also believed to have rich deposits.
He said the government had awarded a contract to state company
PT Sarana Karya to develop the asphalt reserve on 300 hectares.
It currently produces 200,000 tons of bulk asphalt and micro
asphalt annually, the governor said.
The government also awarded a contract to PT Amerta Margayasa
Asphalt, but the company faced difficulties in marketing its
products, La Ode said.
A consortium including PT Hutama Prima had planned to develop
an asphalt refinery plant in Buton, but it was beset by financial
problems in realizing its investment plan due to the monetary
crisis, he added.
"We are making a report to President B.J. Habibie on the
asphalt potential in Buton, with an expectation that he will
support the use of Buton's asphalt for the country's development
projects."
He suggested the government should use Buton asphalt rather
than pricier oil asphalt for road construction to save money in
the crisis.
He said Buton's natural asphalt cost Rp 200,000 (US$18.1) per
ton, compared with oil asphalt's price of between Rp 2 million
and Rp 3 million per ton. (jsk)