Indonesia's President Joko Widodo initiated the commencement of construction for a carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) project in West Papua province, marking the nation's inaugural venture into carbon storage. BP Plc will oversee the project, with an estimated potential to store up to 1.8 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide, as stated by Energy Minister Arifin Tasrif on Friday.
In September, a representative from the energy ministry disclosed that BP's investment in the project would amount to $2.6 billion, anticipating the first carbon injection by 2026, although BP did not provide a specific investment figure. This development follows the recent completion of BP's $4.83 billion Tangguh Train 3 liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in West Papua.
Indonesia, with substantial carbon storage capacity in depleted oil and gas reservoirs and saline aquifers, is actively promoting CCUS and carbon capture and storage (CCS). Current energy ministry data indicates the existence of 15 CCS and CCUS projects at various stages of preparation in the country, collectively representing an investment of nearly $8 billion, including BP's initiative.
Despite the international oil and gas industry's potential to scale up such technology, the International Energy Agency (IEA) cautioned in a Thursday report that it might not be a primary, economically viable solution for reducing global warming without concurrent reductions in oil and gas production.
During the same visit to West Papua, President Jokowi inaugurated the construction of a fertilizer plant in Fakfak, designed to produce 1.15 million metric tonnes of urea fertilizer and 825,000 metric tonnes of ammonia fertilizer. The estimated investment for the plant is 30 trillion rupiah ($1.94 billion), with construction slated for completion in 2038, according to a statement from the presidential palace on Thursday.
