Pertamina gets grant from U.S. for refinery study

State owned oil and gas firm PT Pertamina has got a US$1 million grant from the U.S. Trade & Development Agency (USTDA) for bankable feasibility study on several downstream projects aimed to strengthen national energy security and reduce reliance on imports.

President Director Karen Agustiawan said to cope with the rising demand of energy and petrochemical products in Indonesia, Pertamina urgently needs to realize several infrastructure projects in the downstream sector, such as centralized crude terminal, bottom upgrading at five main refineries.

?The Bankable Feasibility Study (BFS) for Refinery Development Master Plan (RDMP) will be conducted with the involvement of UOP LLC which is the prime licensor for existing refineries. The master plant document will be used as a blueprint or guideline (for Pertamina) to become a world-class downstream business,? she said in a statement.

Based on Pertamina?s plans, total oil fuel output from national refineries is projected to reach 66.7 million kiloliters by 2018, up from 40.6 million kl at present. The additional output capacity is expected to come from bottom upgrading projects and the development of new refineries.

Editing by Johannes Simbolon