Aster invests US$155 million to expand Singapore’s Bukom refinery capacity

[SINGAPORE] Aster Chemicals and Energy said on Tuesday (Dec 9) that it has invested US$155 million in rejuvenation projects at its Bukom refining facility, in a bid to strengthen energy supply resilience.

It has committed US$75 million to revitalise a condensate splitter unit, which will increase the refinery’s crude processing capacity to more than 300,000 barrels a day.

The other project is the Lube Oil Complex, which will be injected with US$71 million, allowing for “safe and reliable upgrading” of refinery residue.

It aims to produce higher value base oils – a main component of lubricants used in industrial, marine and passenger car sectors.

Furthermore, the investment will improve Bukom’s logistics to enable exports of mixed C4 product and imports of pyrolysis gasoline from Chandra Asri’s Cilegon facility in Indonesia, to increase shared feedstocks and processing capabilities.

Aster noted that these projects will enable the Bukom and Cilegon facilities to take advantage of the processing capabilities of both sites, in order to upgrade the value extracted from these products.

The projects are targeted to be operational in 2026.

The energy and petrochemical solutions provider reportedly cut diesel output at the Bukom refinery in November, based on a Reuters report.

This, as a result, drove premiums on 10 parts per million low-sulphur diesel to new highs.

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Various sources confirmed that this disruption was a key driver of spot premiums for industrial fuel in early November, with 60,000 to 100,000 tonnes (447,000 to 745,000 barrels) of diesel output expected to be affected that month.

The Bukom refinery typically is able to process up to 237,000 barrels a day of crude.