Toyo, IKPT to build new Indonesia rubber project

Toyo Engineering Corp. and PT. Inti Karya Persada Tehnik (IKPT) have been awarded a contract for a new synthetic rubber plant project with production capacity of 120,000 tpy in Cilegon on the western tip of Java, Indonesia, officials announced on Monday.

The contract is being awarded from PT. Synthetic Rubber Indonesia (SRI), a JV company of Compagnie Financiere Du Groupe Michelin (Michelin) and PT Chandra Asri Petrochemical Tbk (CAP).

This rubber plant will produce solution styrene-butadiene rubber (SSBR) and polybutadiene Rubber with neodymium catalyst (PBR) licensed by Michelin, which will be used to produce tires. 

The plant will utilize butadiene feedstock produced by PT Petrokimia Butadiene Indonesia, a subsidiary of CAP. 

Toyo entered into an offshore supply contract and IKPT entered into the detailed engineering, procurement and construction contract. The target for completion is in 2018.

Toyo was previously awarded a Butadiene plant project in 2011 and an ethylene expansion project in 2013 from CAP. These experiences and Toyo/IKPT’s proposal to the project execution have been highly evaluated by SRI, which led to this award, according to project officials.

The Indonesian market, with a population of approximately 240 million and rapid economic growth, offers expanding demand for tires along with increasing use of automotive and motorcycles. Toyo says it will strive to actively expand its business in collaboration with IKPT.