"This is good for Pertamina and SK Global Chemical."
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - State energy company PT Pertamina said it is set to integrate its petrochemical business through cooperaiton with SK Global Chemical.

"The partnership is expected to create opportunity for the company to increase the economic value of its oil refineries and at the same time to control the domestic petrochemical market," Pertamina`s president Karen Agustiawan said in a statement here on Monday.

Karen said Pertamina is set to be the main player in petrochemical industry in Indonesia.

She predicted demand for petrochemical products would increase with the country`s expanding economy.

"This is good for Pertamina and SK Global Chemical especially in meeting the domestic demand for petrochemical products, to reduce dependence on imports," she said.

SK Global Chemical is a big petrochemical producer in Asia operating olefin, aromatic polymer and performance chemical industries.

Karen said Indonesia`s production of petrochemicals is not enough yet to feed the downstream industries that the country has to spend US$5 billion on imports of petrochemical; materials per year.

A Pertamina director Chrisna Damayanto said Pertamina and SK Global will develop petrochemical industry worth US$4 billion in Indonesia.

The factory to be completed in 2017 will produce one million tons of petrochemical materials a year, Chrisna said.

Cooperation between Pertamina and SK Global Chemical began in a number of projects such as built in cooperation with SK Innovative, the parent company of SK Global Chemical. Among the projects is development of Lube Base Oil plant in Dumai as a joint venture with Patra SK.
(Uu.AS/H-ASG/H-YH)

Editor: Priyambodo RH
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