Saturday, August 9, 2014

1) PM vow to pursue West Papua issue


2) LG readies $1.3 billion  for petrochemical plant  in Papua

3) LG to Build Petrochemical Factory in Papua
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http://www.solomonstarnews.com/news/national/3399-pm-vow-to-pursue-west-papua-issue

1) PM vow to pursue West Papua issue


Prime Minister Gordon Darcy Lilo pledged to pursue the West Papua issue through Solomon Islands’ newly establish diplomatic office in Indonesia.
When asked on Friday on arrival from his recent overseas leg of visits about the West Papua issue, Mr Lilo said the Solomon Islands - Indonesia bilateral relationship is a platform to ensuring misinformation are gathered and verified properly.

Vanuatu is currently the only Melanesian country that is supporting West Papua.

 “I met with the out-going president of Indonesia Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and talked with the president elect Joko Widodo on this issue.”

He said Solomon Islands intention is to go down to the root of the problem and solve the facts, not rumours.

“The only way is to engage in partnership for a best solution.

“With understanding of the issues, it will be better in handling the issues when on the ground,” he explained.

Mr Lilo said his meeting with the outgoing president has been fruitful on that matter, and agreed to allow Solomon Islands permission into West Papua on a common understanding.

“Indonesia’s President Elect, Joko Widodo emphasize similar sentiments and Solomon Islands is looking forward to working closely with his government,” he added.

He said whilst there, he also made other bilateral talks on investment and education.

He held high-level talks with Indonesia’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), Golden Agri-Resources (GAR) Ltd Company and Maritim Timur Jaya (Indonesia’s first and largest fisheries industrial estate).

“I formally welcomed Indonesian investors into the country.

“Ten scholarships have also been secured during talks with the Indonesian.

“Ten scholarships have been offered by Indonesia for Solomon Islands, and I am sure this will be very important for our children.

“Education plays a vital role to development therefore such moves are positive for the country.”

BY BRADFORD THEONOMI
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2) LG readies $1.3 billion  for petrochemical plant  in Papua
Tama Salim, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Business | Sat, August 09 2014, 11:50 AM

LG International will allocate up to US$13 billion to build and operate a petrochemical complex in the Bintuni industrial area in West Papua, the South Korean conglomerate’s representative said.

Speaking to reporters following a meeting with Industry Minister MS Hidayat in Jakarta on Friday, LG senior executive Jee Hoon-Kang said the petrochemical plant would have the capacity to produce one billion tons of methanol a year.

However, he said LG would need a guarantee from the government to get enough supply of gas before starting the project.

“This is going to be a very good opportunity for us if we get gas allocation. With it, we can start to develop the [Bintuni] project with the Industry Ministry,” Kang told reporters.

Before the three-year construction of the facility commences, Kang said that the company would require at least one year for “deeper study”, to decide on the appropriate licensing and to locate natural gas supply.

The conversion of 2,300 hectares (ha) of conservation land for the Bintuni complex is currently awaiting approval from the Forestry Ministry.

During Friday’s meeting with the minister, Kang was informed about the plan to designate a 200 ha site as a shared facility for companies operating within Bintuni. “This is the first time we discussed the matter and I wish to discuss this with our partners [...] There are strong and weak points. [But] it is a good plan,” he said.

The ministry’s manufacturing industry director, Harjanto, who was present in the meeting, said the common facility would be shared by LG, German petrochemical company Ferrostaal Industrial Projects and state-owned fertilizer company PT Pupuk Indonesia in order to cut infrastructure costs.

“Building infrastructure is costly, so we see this as an opportunity for integration and optimization of investments among the companies,” Harjanto said.

“If everyone builds their own power plants, it would take up all the land. If one power plant is shared among companies, it will be more efficient. The idea is to integrate the petrochemical and fertilizer industries so their byproducts can also be shared among them.”

Responding to questions regarding Bintuni’s projected time frame, Harjanto said that it depended on the availability of gas.

“Genting Oil’s Kasowari well [in Papua] could be one of the sources for this industry. So once the natural gas is available, then the project will start,” he added.

To support its operations, Harjanto said that LG would need 91 million standard cubic feet per day (MMSCFD) of natural gas, which would bring the total gas consumption of Bintuni up to approximately 202 MMSCFD. There are about 48 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves that have already been identified in the area.

He also said that the ministry would soon be signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with LG that would clarify the terms of their partnership, including those related to gas allocation.

“This is a milestone in the partnership forged [with LG] for the development of the petrochemical industry in Bintuni,” he said.

The integrated petrochemical complex in Bintuni would produce urea and ammonia-based fertilizers and a wide array of petrochemical products, including methanol, polypropylene and polyethylene.

Bintuni is located near the Tangguh liquefied natural gas (LNG) field in West Papua, which is one of the biggest contributors in Indonesia’s overseas gas contracts.
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ATURDAY, 09 AUGUST, 2014 | 13:30 WIB
3) LG to Build Petrochemical Factory in Papua
TEMPO.COJakarta - LG International Chief Representative Jee Hoon-kang said yesterday that his company has pledged a US$1.2-billion investment at the Special Economic Zone (KEK) in Bintuni Bay, West Papua. LG will construct a petrochemical factory to produce methanol.
According to Kang, LG will complete the factory feasibility study within a year after the natural gas allocation for the energy and raw material has been confirmed. Kang projected that the production capacity of the factory would reach one million tons per annum.
"We hope that we can start the project with the government soon," he said.
Harjanto, Industry Ministry’s Director General for Base Manufacturing Industry, agreed on following up LG’s request.
"We will draft a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) of the cooperation [with LG]," Harjanto said, promised that petrochemical industry would be prioritized and governed by a presidential decree.
The government has planned on developing an economic zone in Bintuni Bay since 2010 as a petrochemical industry base. Other companies joined as investors in the project include Germany’s Ferrostaal, Japan’s Sojizt and PT Pupuk Indonesia.
INDRI MAULIDAR
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