CHIBA, Japan (July 7, 2015) — A joint venture company co-owned by Group Michelin has awarded construction contracts for a synthetic rubber (SR) plant in Indonesia to a Japanese industrial engineering and construction firm and an Indonesian affiliate.
The venture, P.T. Synthetic Rubber Indonesia (SRI), awarded the offshore supply contract to Chiba-based Toyo Engineering Corp. and detail engineering, procurement and construction contract to P.T. Inti Karya Persada Tehnik, according to Toyo Engineering.
The $435 million plant, to be built in Cilegon, Java, Indonesia, is slated to be ready for production by 2018, with a rated annual production capacity of 120,000 metric tons of solution styrene butadiene rubber (SBR) and polybutadiene. Land preparation at the site — adjacent to an existing SRI complex — has been completed, according to the company.
Michelin established SRI in June 2013 with P.T. Chandra Asri Petrochemical Tbk., an Indonesian producer of styrene and butadiene, the core components for SR. Michelin own 55 percent.
At that time, Michelin said the investment was in line with the high growth of the auto industry in newly emerged countries and the global trend toward more performance requirements from tires.
This plant will produce solution SBR and polybutadiene rubber with neodymium catalyst, both licensed by Michelin, which will use the materials to produce tires, according to Toyo Engineering.
The plant will use butadiene feedstock produced by P.T. Petrokimia Butadiene Indonesia, a subsidiary of P.T. Chandra Asri Petrochemical.
The facility will be Michelin's third SR plant. It also operates SR capacity at plants in Bassens, France, and Louisville, Ky.
In Asia, Michelin has tire plants in China, India and Thailand and is a minority owner of Indonesia's P.T. Gajah Tunggal Tbk.
Toyo Engineering noted that the Indonesian market — with a population of roughly 240 million and rapid economic growth — offers expanding demand for vehicles and motorcycyles and consequently, tires.