PT Pertamina (Jakarta, Indonesia) and Air Liquide Indonesia agreed to collaborate in developing Carbon Capture and Utilization (CCU) technology at the Balikpapan Refinery Processing Unit.
It is a form of Pertamina’s commitment to implementing Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) aspects and supporting Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions reduction. This cooperation agreement was realized through a Joint Study Agreement (JSA). Within the framework of this JSA, Pertamina and Air Liquide will conduct a joint study on CO2 Syngas and Flue Gas capture technology application from Hydrogen production in the Balikpapan Refinery area.
The captured CO2 emissions will be compressed and channeled to a potential CO2 storage area in the Kutai Basin, East Kalimantan, as a solution for low-carbon Hydrogen production or Blue Hydrogen. Some of the CO2 will also be converted into value-added products, Methanol which can be mixed with fuel oil for the low-carbon fuel production.
Deputy Minister I of State-Owned Enterprises, Pahala Nugraha Mansury, said that the government has committed to reducing Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions and Net Zero emissions by 2060 as outlined in Presidential Regulation No. 98/2021. The Presidential Regulation is translated into 48 derivative rules, and several regulations are being drafted, such as National Determined Contribution (NDC) per sector, Carbon Economic Value, and Carbon Tax.
According to Pahala, this initiative has an aggressive target of reducing around 85 million tons of CO2e/year or contributing 10% to the National Determined Contribution in 2030.
“The CCUS technology application can increase oil and gas production while reducing greenhouse gas emissions significantly,” added Pahala.
Pahala continued that the CCUS technology enables Pertamina’s refineries to make available CO2 for either storage (CCS) or use (CCU) and integrates this sector into a circular economy.