APIC ’18: Malaysia’s PCG PIC project more than 90% completed – CEO

KUALA LUMPUR (ICIS)–PETRONAS Chemicals Group’s (PCG) project in Pengerang Integrated Complex (PIC) in southern Malaysia is close to completion, with the refinery and cracker units expected to start up in early 2019, PCG’s CEO said on Tuesday.

– Capex for Johor project at $27bn

– PP, HDPE and LLDPE combined output expected at 1.65m tonnes/year

– Firm’s overall petchems output to reach 14.6m tonnes/year by 2020

The petrochemicals plants are expected to start up in the second half of 2019.

“Overall, PIC is more than 90% completed and we are targeting mechanical completion by the end of this year,” Sazali Hamzah told ICIS on the sidelines of the 2018 Asia Petrochemical Industry Conference (APIC) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

PETRONAS’ PIC project in Johor, with a capital expenditure (capex) of $27bn, consists of RAPID and six associated facilities and is on track to be completed by the end of next year, he added.

The site’s polymer capacities include 350,000 tonnes/year of linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE); 900,000 tonnes/year of polypropylene (PP); and 400,000 tonnes/year of high density polyethylene (HDPE).

“The first half [2019] we will start up the refinery and cracker and second half will be petrochemicals,” he said.

The company may start-up one of its two 450,000 tonnes/year polypropylene (PP) trains in tandem with the refinery and cracker coming on line, Sazali said.

The other polymer units will start-up in the second half of next year, with actual commercial operations likely to begin from 2020, he said.

PIC downstream petrochemical units are likely to run at “70-80% utilisation” once they begin commercial operations in 2020, Sazali said.

By 2020, the company’s overall nameplate capacity will grow to 14.6m tonnes/year from 12.7m tonnes/year, he said.

APIC 2018 runs on 20-21 August.

Picture source: PCG

Interview article by Nurluqman Suratman