Lotte Chemical Proposes 1.2 Million Tons Of Elpiji Imports For Petrochemical Factory Needs

Director General (Dirjen) of Oil and Gas (Migas) of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Laode Sulaeman. (Photo: Maria Trisnawati/VOI)

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) revealed that PT Lotte Chemical Indonesia (LCI) has applied for LPG imports of 1.2 million tons.

Just so you know, this LPG will be used as raw material for petrochemical processing.

The Director General (Dirjen) of Oil and Gas (Migas) of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Laode Sulaeman, said that the supply of LPG will be imported from abroad and will not interfere with the stability of domestic supply.

"No, he's imported. Currently, he's still importing. No one is domestic yet," said Laode when met at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Building, Friday, November 7.

Previously, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Bahlil Lahadalia had also estimated that the factory, which Prabowo had just inaugurated on Thursday, November 6, 2025, would require 1.2 million tons of LPG, so domestic consumption would rise to 10 million tons by 2026.

"We know that we have just inaugurated Cilegon, we need an LPG of approximately 1.2 million tons per year. So our consumption will be in the future, in 2026, it has reached almost 10 million tons of LPG. We can't take long, we have to immediately build domestic industries," said Bahlil.

The presence of the factory is expected to reduce dependence on the import of petrochemical products, which so far have reached around 50 percent, while strengthening the availability of raw materials for the domestic downstream industry.

The project, which was initiated in 2016, spent about US$3.9 billion or around Rp.62.4 trillion. This project marks the re-arrival of the construction of the Naphtha Cracker complex in Indonesia after about 30 years.

Had stalled for 5 years, but thanks to the initiative and breakthrough from Minister Bahlil, who at that time served as Minister of Investment/Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM), obstacles related to the land supply process could finally be resolved.

Demikian pula halnya dengan kemudahan investasi, mulai dari penyederhanaan perizinan hingga pemberian insentif yang kompetitif.

Hingga akhirnya pada April 2022 proses pembangunan pabrik berhasil dimulai dan bisa beroperasi sejak Oktober 2025.

Ketika berproduksi penuh, fasilitas ini diperkirakan menghasilkan 15 produk petrokimia hilirisasi migas senilai sekitar 2 miliar dolar AS per tahun, terdiri atas 1,4 miliar dolar AS substitusi impor dan 600 juta dolar AS tambahan ekspor, sehingga turut memperkuat neraca perdagangan sektor industri kimia nasional.

Likewise, with ease of investment, starting from simplifying licensing to providing competitive incentives.

Until finally in April 2022, the factory construction process has been successfully started and can operate since October 2025.

When fully produced, this facility is estimated to produce 15 oil and gas downstream petrochemical products worth around US$2 billion per year, consisting of US$1.4 billion in import substitution and US$600 million in additional exports, thereby strengthening the trade balance of the national chemical industry sector.