Build The First Soda Ash Factory In RI, Pupuk Kaltim Targets Groundbreaking In The First Quarter Of 2025

PT Kaltim Corporate Secretary Teguh Ismantoro (Photo: Screenshot by Mery Handayani/VOI)

PT Pupuk Kalimantan Timur or Pupuk Kaltim will build the first soda ash factory in Indonesia. The factory located in the Bontang Industrial Estate, East Kalimantan is planned to groundbreaking in the first quarter of 2025.

Corporate Secretary Teguh Ismantoro said the construction of this factory is a new history for Indonesia. This is because so far the domestic demand for soda ash has been met by imports.

"Located in the Pontang industrial area, East Kalimantan, and arguably that the construction of this factory is quite historic because it will be the first soda ash factory to be built in Indonesia," he said in a virtual press conference, Monday, January 20.

"So so far the need for soda ash in Indonesia has been met by means of imports, because there is no factory in Indonesia yet," he continued.

According to Teguh, this soda ash factory is not only a symbol of Pupuk Kaltim's commitment to the transformation of the petrochemical industry nationally, but also a form of support for the downstream program run by the government.

"As the largest urea producer in Southeast Asia, Pupuk Kaltim continues to innovate to create added value and support the independence of the national industry, in this case by reducing dependence on imports on soda ash commodities," he explained.

The plan, said Teguh, is that the soda ash factory will be built in an industrial estate complex area with an area of approximately 16 hectares (ha) with a production capacity of approximately 300,000 metric tons per year.

"The total production is expected to be able to exceed around 30 percent of the national soda ash needs," he said.

Groundbreaking Quarter I-2025

Meanwhile, Head of the Soda Ash Rifki Project Preparation Team Adi Nugroho said the factory will produce two products, namely soda ash 300,000 metric tons and ammonium chloride of 300,000 metric tons per year.

"So, hopefully later we can carry out the groundbreaking of the factory construction which is planned to be carried out in the first quarter of 2025," said Rifki.

Rifki also revealed that his party had appointed the implementing contractor for the soda ash factory project. He said the signing with the contractor would be carried out in the near future.

"God willing, later on Wednesday, January 22, 2025, we will carry out the signing of the contract carried out by the board of directors of the team with the winning consortium, namely PT TCC Indonesia Branch, and also PT Informed Teknologi Internasional," he said.

Rifki said the duration of the construction of the soda ash factory project took up to 33 months. Therefore, he said the groundbreaking was contested to be implemented in the first quarter of 2025.

"We plan to get started in the first quarter of 2025 so we can start producing commercially by the end of 2027," he explained.