Minister of Industry (Menperin) Airlangga Hartarto inaugurated the factory owned by PT Synthetic Rubber Indonesia (SRI) as the first synthetic rubber factory in Indonesia to use environmentally friendly technology.
The Minister of Industry explained that SRI has a production capacity of 120,000 tons per year which will increase the added value of butadiene and styrene monomer which are produced domestically, as well as strengthen the structure of the petrochemical industry from upstream to downstream.
“We appreciate it because the inauguration of the SRI factory is proof that investment in Indonesia is attractive for investors,” said Airlangga.
He explained that the synthetic rubber industry is an industry that needs to be developed in line with the increasingly advanced national economy. Synthetic rubber is widely used to produce tires, conveyor belts, rubber components, footwear and electrical cable wrapping.
Currently there is only one synthetic rubber producer with a capacity of 75,000 tons per year. Meanwhile, domestic demand for synthetic rubber in 2017 reached 230 thousand tons, so to meet this need, it was met by imports.
On the same occasion, President Director of SRI, Brad Karas, said that SRI was the first factory in Indonesia to use Michelin’s environmentally friendly technology.
SRI produces synthetic rubber with the types Solution Styrene Butadiene Rubber (SSBR) and Neodymium catalyst – Butadiene Rubber (NdBR), both of which are materials for producing environmentally friendly tires.
Meanwhile, SRI is a joint venture resulting from a collaboration between Michelin and PT Chandra Asri Petrochemical Tbk which was founded on June 17 2013 with share ownership of 55 percent and 45 percent respectively. The investment value from this collaboration reached 435 million US dollars. SRI received tax holiday incentives from the Indonesian Government.
SRI also started production in August 2018 and has exported US$ 250 million, in line with the government’s strategy to increase state income by strengthening the domestic manufacturing sector.
Based on data from the Ministry of Industry, Indonesia’s manufacturing industry exports continue to increase every year. In the third quarter of 2018, exports reached 97.52 billion US dollars, an increase of 5.71 percent from the same period the previous year, namely 92.25 billion US dollars.
source: https://www.antaranews.com/berita/772844/menperin-resmikan-pabrik-karet-sintetis-ramah-lingkungan