Total investment of 16.5 billion yuan! China National Chemical Engineering Corporation signs a large-scale national strategic coal-to-methanol project in Indonesia

On July 29, a signing ceremony for major projects was held in Jakarta, Indonesia. PT Bumi Etam Chemical (BEC) officially signed the Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) contract and the Engineering, Procurement, Construction, and Commissioning (EPCC) framework agreement, marking the official launch of the East Kalimantan coal-to-methanol project. China National Chemical Engineering Group (CNCEC) is participating in the project construction as the core engineering contractor.

The project has a total investment of 2.3 billion USD, equivalent to approximately 16.5 billion RMB, making it the largest order won by a Chinese engineering enterprise in the Indonesian market this week.

This signing is viewed by the industry as a significant milestone in the development of Southeast Asia's coal chemical industry. Indonesia's coal chemical industry, which had been stalled for years, is seeing substantive progress. It also marks the continued deep participation of Chinese chemical engineering technology in the industrialization of resource-rich countries in Southeast Asia, leveraging the advantages of "technology + industrial chain."

Indonesia ranks sixth globally in coal resource reserves, and its long-term industrial model has been dominated by the direct export of raw coal.

In recent years, the Indonesian government has vigorously promoted a downstream development strategy for minerals and coal, driving the transformation of resource development models and guiding the industry from raw coal exports to local deep processing and integrated coal-chemical development. Methanol, as a key basic chemical raw material, is an important hub for extending coal resources into the fine chemical industry. At present, Indonesia's methanol supply relies heavily on imports, with an annual domestic supply gap exceeding one million tons, highlighting a significant industrial shortcoming.

According to the project plan, this coal-to-methanol project is located in East Kalimantan Province, with a designed annual methanol production capacity of 2 million tons, capable of consuming approximately 7.78 million tons of low-calorific-value coal annually. The project can locally consume low-calorific-value off-spec coal with low utilization value locally, transforming resource advantages into chemical product supply capabilities, effectively filling the domestic methanol supply gap and reducing import dependency.

It is worth noting that the project has been recognized as a National Strategic Project by the Indonesian Ministry of Investment and Downstream Industries. The Indonesian government expects to achieve technology transfer through the project's advancement, simultaneously carry out the cultivation of local chemical professionals, and gradually cultivate an autonomous chemical industry system.

Industry analysis indicates that this cooperation fully leverages China National Chemical Engineering's comprehensive engineering construction experience in the fields of coal gasification and coal-to-methanol. As multiple Southeast Asian countries accelerate their layout for resource downstream conversion, going global with mature coal chemical complete technologies is becoming an important path for Chinese chemical engineering enterprises to explore overseas markets. The implementation of this project will not only improve Indonesia's basic chemical industry chain but also further deepen pragmatic cooperation between China and Indonesia in the energy and chemical sectors.