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

By Raymond Hendriawan

The Sunda Asri Basin Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) project is gaining commercial momentum as Pertamina Hulu Energi (PHE) outlined a clearer development path at the International & Indonesia CCS Forum (IICCS) 2025.

Grace Stephani, Lead Project Carbon Management at PHE, confirmed that the company has formally submitted a Wilayah Izin Penyimpanan Karbon (WIPK), or Carbon Storage License Area, for the Asri saline aquifer as of October 2025. The company is targeting first injection by 2030 at a capacity of up to 2.5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA), in line with its ongoing strategic partnership with ExxonMobil.

This announcement follows the project's initial reveal in May 2025, where ExxonMobil and PHE proposed the Sunda Asri Basin as a large-scale CCS hub serving both domestic and international emitters. Located offshore West Java in shallow waters (approximately 30 meters deep), the basin is estimated to have up to 3 gigatons of CO₂ storage capacity.

The Sunda Asri CCS Hub is designed as a regional transport and storage (T&S) service, incorporating liquid CO₂ shipping, an onshore import terminal, a 180-kilometer pipeline, and offshore injection wells targeting deep saline formations.

The proposed business model includes:

• 30-year storage contracts (with a 20-year extension option)
• 20-year transport contracts (extendable by 10 years)
• 10 years of post-closure monitoring

PHE is targeting a market split of 70 percent domestic and 30 percent international volumes, leveraging Indonesia’s regulatory framework that allows up to 30 percent of a storage site’s capacity to be used for imported CO₂. This provision positions Sunda Asri as more than a national decarbonization asset—it becomes a potential cross-border CCS hub for the Asia-Pacific region.

Read also: PHE to begin appraisal drilling for CCS project in Sunda Asri region

Grace also confirmed that long-term injection capacity is being scoped for up to 30 MTPA, with total storage potential reaching approximately 2.9 gigatons. The 2.5 MTPA target by 2030 provides a pragmatic entry point, with flexibility for phased expansion, additional compression capacity, and a second terminal as market demand develops.

Supportive policy landscape

Two recent policies underpin the project’s commercial viability:

1.   Presidential Regulation No. 14/2024, which establishes Indonesia’s national CCS framework

2.   MEMR Regulation No. 16/2024, which operationalizes WIPK permits, enables third-party storage services, sets out tariff and fiscal incentive structures, and permits CO₂ imports of up to 30 percent per site capacity

These policies clarify that storage operators can charge service fees (subject to Ministry approval) and that the state receives a share of revenues through royalties—an important factor for inter-agency alignment and national benefit-sharing.

“Preparing the contractual phase beyond the MoUs—particularly the cross-border CO₂ governance framework—is the next key milestone,” said Grace.

Her remarks were echoed by Egon van der Hoeven, President of ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions Asia Pacific, who emphasized the critical need for clear, stable policy signals to de-risk large-scale CCS investments.

The Sunda Asri CCS initiative has steadily advanced since the signing of the initial Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Pertamina and ExxonMobil at COP26 in Glasgow in November 2021.

Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak