W. Java to get new refinery

CIREBON, West Java (Antara): An American businessman and a number of Indonesian entrepreneurs plan to build an oil refinery in Indramayu district, West Java, district head Irianto Syafruddin said here on Tuesday.

The company will refine crude oil from the Middle East and sell its product to China, Irianto said.

The plan to build the oil refinery was discussed with the investors during a recent meeting at the World Trade Center building in Jakarta.

"I have already received the proposal and I have been studying it," Irianto said.

The American investor will have a 60 percent stake in the venture while the Indonesian businessmen, including former officials of state oil and gas company PT Pertamina, will own the remaining 40 percent, he said.

The investors have chosen Indramayu as the site of the oil refinery because the district is located between Balongan district, also in West Java, and Plumpang, an area in North Jakarta.

Balongan and Plumpang are linked by an oil and gas pipeline.