JAKARTA – PT Chandra Asri Pacific Tbk (TPIA) reported that it has increased the production capacity of its Methyl Tert-butyl Ether (MTBE) and Butene-1 (B1) plants by 25% as of today, Monday (9/3).

The expansion of the facility and the increase in production capacity reinforce TPIA’s position as the sole producer of MTBE and Butene-1 in Indonesia.

“At the same time supporting the availability of strategic raw material supplies for various domestic industrial sectors,” the management added in an official statement on Monday (9/3).

According to the company, MTBE is one of the “octane booster” components used in gasoline fuel, which helps improve combustion quality and fuel efficiency.

Meanwhile, Butene-1 is a comonomer used in the production of polyethylene, a raw material widely used across various sectors including manufacturing, packaging and consumer products.

“In the long term, we hope the presence of our facilities will help strengthen the independence of the national industrial sector while opening opportunities for Indonesia to reinforce its position in the regional petrochemical supply chain,” said Erwin Ciputra, President Director of TPIA.

The capacity expansion project has been underway for more than a year. In December 2024, TPIA signed an Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contract with PT Inti Karya Persada Tehnik (IKPT) to expand the MTBE and B1 production facilities.

IKPT was also entrusted by TPIA to initiate construction of the plant in 2018, and the facility has been operational since 2020, located within the company’s integrated petrochemical complex in Cilegon, Banten. (ZH)