Pertamina seeks new partner for Sunda Asri CCS project after ExxonMobil exit

By Bernard Loebs

State energy firm PT Pertamina (Persero) is seeking a new partner for its Sunda Asri carbon capture and storage (CCS) project after ExxonMobil decided not to continue its involvement, Pertamina’s chief executive said on Wednesday.

Pertamina CEO Simon Aloysius Mantiri said the company would continue developing the project despite ExxonMobil’s decision to focus on other CCS ventures.

 “We have the Sunda Asri Basin, which has very large CO₂ storage capacity, but we need to look for another partner because our current partner has chosen to focus on other projects,” Simon said during World Economic Forum 2026 in Davos,  broadcast on Metro TV. He added that Singapore is among the potential customers for CO₂ storage at Sunda Asri.

Read also: Sunda Asri CCS hub moves forward as PHE targets 2.5 MTPA injection by 2030

The Sunda Asri CCS project, led by Pertamina’s upstream unit Pertamina Hulu Energi (PHE), is planned as a large-scale transport and storage hub located offshore West Java. The basin is estimated to have up to 3 gigatons of CO₂ storage capacity in deep saline aquifers.

PHE previously said it had submitted an application for a carbon storage licence area, in October 2025 and was targeting first CO₂ injection by 2030 at an initial capacity of up to 2.5 million tonnes per year.

The project was designed to serve both domestic and international emitters, supported by regulations allowing up to 30% of a site’s storage capacity to be used for imported CO₂.

Under the development plan outlined by PHE, the Sunda Asri CCS hub would include liquid CO₂ shipping, an onshore import terminal, a 180-kilometre pipeline and offshore injection wells, with long-term expansion potential of up to 30 million tonnes per year.

Pertamina said it remains committed to advancing the project and will continue discussions with prospective partners to ensure Sunda Asri proceeds as planned.

Editing by Alexander Ginting