Aster outage may ripple across Singapore’s petrochemical sector

[SINGAPORE] Singapore-based Aster Chemicals and Energy is prioritising a safe restart of its Bukom Island naphtha cracker while engaging with customers, said the company. But its force majeure on supplies has already unsettled markets as petrochemicals remain a key pillar of the Republic’s export economy, worth S$1 billion in July alone.

An Aster spokesperson told The Business Times: “Aster has engaged with its customers and will continue to do so. The company’s top priority is to resume production safely. Normal operations continue in the rest of the non-affected plants.”

Aster Chemicals and Energy is a joint venture between Indonesia’s Chandra Asri Pacific, the country’s largest integrated petrochemical producer (80 per cent), and Switzerland’s Glencore, the global commodity trading giant (20 per cent). It was established in mid-2024 following its rebranding from Shell Singapore’s Energy and Chemicals Park.