Indonesia braces to open a new phosphoric acid plant in East Java this year. The $200 million brand new facility which has been under construction since the end of 2010.
It is expected to produce 200,000 tons of phosphoric acid per year for use in fertilizers, say Indonesian officials, noting that the new phosphoric acid plant will boost the country’s production capacity so that it will no more need to import raw materials to make fertilizers.
State-run fertilizer company Petrokimia Gresik which is spearheading the project is also planning to upgrade its existing facility so that it will be also able to produce 200,000 tons of phosphoric acid per year. The upgrade will cost $ 160 million and will expand the plant’s industrial compound to include a sulphuric acid unit with a capacity of 600,000 tons per year and a gypsum purification unit with a similar capacity.
The expansion of this phosphoric acid plant will enable the country to meet its phosphoric acid needs and save hard currency for the state treasury. Petrokimia Gresik says it needs 600,000 tons of phosphoric acid to produce 2.8 million tons of NPK fertilizer a year, while its current phosphoric acid facility can only produce one third of what is required.
The plant will require some 770,000 tons of phosphate and 200,000 tons of sulphur a year to meet its production goals. Petrokimia Gresik also mulls to revamp its water processing installation in Gunung Sari, Surabaya, to boost its capacity from 720 cubic meters to 3,800 cubic meters per hour.
