TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - State oil company Pertamina has planned to demolish an 80-hectare Pertamina employees housing complex in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, to expand its refinery.

“Although the land belongs to Pertamina, everything will be coordinated,” Pertamina Balikpapan spokesperson Dian Hapsari said on Sunday, January 31, 2016.

Pertamina employees will be relocated to a number of areas, including Mount Dubbs. Most of the buildings were erected after the World War II. The Parikesit Stadion located in the area was built after the Pacific War ended.

The Parikesit Stadium had been a home base of local soccer team Persiba since 1950.

“Next week we will meet Persiba Management,” Hapsari added.

Pertamina’s new refinery development project is an expansion of an existing refinery. The expansion of the facility is expected to boost Pertamina’s production from 260,000 barrels per day to 360,000 barrels per day.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has set a target for the new refinery to be fully operational by 2019. Although Japanese investors JX Nippon Oil and Energy Cooperation decided to bail, Pertamina insisted on financing the US$5 billion worth of project.

With additional 100,000 barrels per day, Pertamina expects to reduce fuel imports to Indonesia.

BISNIS.COM