November 6, 2025 | 04:46 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The petrochemical complex owned by PT Lotte Chemical Indonesia (LCI) has officially commenced its integrated operation in Cilegon, Banten. Valued at approximately US$3.98 billion (around Rp60 trillion), the facility is said to be the largest petrochemical plant in Southeast Asia. It is a strategic project intended to strengthen the nation's self-reliance in the petrochemical industry.
The inauguration of this industrial area took place on Thursday, November 6, 2025, attended by President Prabowo Subianto, Chair & CEO of Lotte Group Shin Dong-bin, General Manager of Lotte Chemical Lee Young-joon, and representatives from the South Korean Embassy in Indonesia.
In his speech, Prabowo expressed his appreciation for the completion of this major project, as it aligns with the government's current agenda of promoting downstreaming. "This is a step forward for energy self-reliance," said Prabowo as quoted from the live broadcast on the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources' YouTube channel on Thursday, November 6, 2025.
Chair & CEO of Lotte Group Shin Dong-bin stated that this investment marks a long-term partnership between Indonesia and South Korea. He referred to the project as one of South Korea's largest investments in Indonesia. It is expected to strengthen the competitiveness of the domestic petrochemical industry and support national manufacturing needs.
Shin mentioned that the 110-hectare complex is equipped with a naphtha cracker facility with a production capacity of 3 million tons per year, capable of producing 1 million tons of ethylene, 520,000 tons of propylene, 350,000 tons of polypropylene, 140,000 tons of butadiene, as well as 400,000 tons of benzene, toluene, and xylene (BTX).
"This facility began commercial operations in October 2025 and is integrated with a 450,000 tons polyethylene (PE) plant that had previously commenced operations, thus enhancing production process efficiency," he said as quoted from the written statement.
According to the company's website, LCI has implemented the latest design technology from Korea, emphasizing energy efficiency and carbon emission reduction. In addition, the raw materials can use up to 50 percent LPG as an alternative to naphtha. The use of this energy is expected to reduce production costs.
The company has also implemented a digital Asset Information Management (AIM) system based on a 3D model to support preventive maintenance and operational reliability. Thanks to this facility, LCI is projected to create an economic value of approximately US$2 billion per year, while simultaneously reducing dependence on imported basic chemical raw materials and increasing the national petrochemical self-reliance rate to 67 percent.
In line with the high demand for chemical raw materials in the region, Lotte Chemical is targeting the Southeast Asian market as the focus of its business expansion. "We are committed to making Indonesia a center for technology development, innovation, and human resource capacity enhancement in the petrochemical field," Shin stated.
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