Pertamina secures feedstock for Cilacap refinery’s SAF-HVO expansion

Indonesia’s state-owned PT Pertamina has entered a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with PT Gapura Mas Lestari (PT GML) for supply of biogenic feedstock to support the second phase of a grassroots renewable fuels production unit at subsidiary PT Kilang Pertamina Internasional’s (PT KPI) 348,000-b/d Cilacap integrated refining and petrochemical complex in Central Java (OGJ Online, Sept. 18, 2023).

Under the MOU signed in early December, PT GML—will supply PT KPI used cooking oil (UCO) that will serve as feedstock for production of hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO; biodiesel) and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) at Phase 2 of the operator’s Cilacap Green Refinery Cilacap (CGR) project, PT KPI said in a mid-December release.

CGR Phase 2 aims to double CGR Phase 1’s current output by expanding processing of UCO at the site to 6,000 b/d to achieve an overall combined SAF-HVO production of about 300,000 kl/year, the operator said.

To be equipped with Topsoe AS’ proprietary HydroFlex process technology and most recently scheduled for startup in 2026, CGR Phase 2 will follow the June-2022 commissioning of CGR Phase 1 that has currently enabled the Cilacap refinery to produce 2,500-3,000 b/d of HVO with a maximum sulfur content of 5 ppm—as well as unidentified volumes of SAF and bionaphtha—via co-processing from a feedstock of refined bleached deodorized palm oil.

CGR Phase 2 also includes construction of associated infrastructure, including a palm oil treater, fractionator, and other unidentified offsite installations, PT KPI said in a July 2024 release.  

In a release dated Oct. 27, 2023, Pertamina confirmed SAF produced at the Cilacap refinery via co-processing of palm oil components using the hydrotreated esters and fatty acids (HEFA) method was launched in its first commercial flights carried out by Garuda Indonesia, the country’s state-owned airline.

The renewable fuels production projects at Cilacap—as well as a separately proposed development at PT KPI’s 120,000-b/d Plaju-Sungai Gerong refinery in South Sumatra that would enable the site to produce 20,000 b/d of renewable diesel, SAF, and bionaphtha beginning in 2027—comes as part of the operator’s strategy to increase production of green fuels in helping to achieve its own internal energy transition goals and comply with Indonesia’s 2025 New Renewable Energy mix and 2060 net-zero emissions targets (OGJ Online, Sept. 29, 2020).