Crude exporters to help Indonesian refining

May 11, 2006
Indonesia's state-run oil and gas company PT Pertamina plans to build two refineries and upgrade several others with support from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates.

Eric Watkins
Senior Correspondent

LOS ANGELES, May 11 -- Indonesia's state-run oil and gas company PT Pertamina plans to build two refineries and upgrade several others with support from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, returning from a state visit to the Middle East, said Pertamina and Saudi Arabia's state-run Aramco will build a refinery in East Java.

He said Saudi Arabia would supply crude oil to the refinery. The products would be used largely to meet domestic demand, with some exports possible.

The president said Pertamina and a Kuwaiti oil company would build a refinery in an eastern Indonesia region, but he did not specify the location or provide further details of the project.

Yudhoyono also said Pertamina would work with the United Arab Emirates to increase the capacity of existing refineries in Cilacap, Cirebon, and East Kalimantan.

Contact Eric Watkins at [email protected].