Johor Petroleum Development Corporation Bhd (JPDC) today denied rumours in the Taiwan media that a petrochemical company from Taiwan is backing out from plans to invest in a project in the Pengerang Integrated Petroleum Complex (PIPC).

Chief executive Mohd Yazid Jaafar said that the Taiwan company was in fact actively carrying out a feasibility study on the related project and that it was due for completion in August next year.

“The company is doing a feasibility study in Pengerang for the project. They have not indicated anything about pulling out from the PIPC project,” he said when contacted by Bernama in Johor Baru today.

The feasibility study will also include an Environment Impact Assessment report.

A year has been given to the company to complete the feasibility study on the project.

“The Taiwan company’s proposal involve the building of a petroleum chemical complex encompassing the entire chain of the petrochemical industry,” Mohd Yazid said, adding that this would involve some 22 to 24 plants.

Last week, Taiwan’s ‘Economic Daily News ’ reported that the subsidiary of CPC Corporation, Kuokuang Petrochemical Technology, had decided to transfer the building of its methyl methacrylate plant worth more than RM1 billion from Pengerang to the Taichung Port in Taiwan.

The article claimed that the decision to transfer the building of the plant to Taiwan was due to delays in its investment in Johor following several issues including land issue.

PIPC, which occupies an 8,100-hectare area will house several oil and  related industries such as oil refineries as well as petrochemical and liquefied natural gas terminals in Pengerang.

It is expected to make Pengerang a regional oil and gas industry hub.

Also to be set up under the PIPC is national oil company Petronas’ integrated petromical refinery plant.

Dialog Bhd and its partner Royal Vopak, and the Johor state government are also building the RM5 billion Pengerang Independent Deepwater Petroleum Terminal in the area.

- Bernama