Supporting Young Researchers, Pertamina Builds Molecular Engineering Building at ITB

Bandung, May 6, 2024 - PT Pertamina (Persero) is committed to supporting research and development in the education and research sector. It is proven by the grant building construction for the Molecular Engineering and Functional Materials Building in Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB). The symbolic handover was conducted by the President Director of Pertamina, Nicke Widyawati, at the kick-off event of Pertamina Goes To Campus (PGTC) at ITB, Bandung, on Monday, May 6, 2024.

Vice President of Corporate Communication of Pertamina, Fadjar Djoko Santoso, stated that the grant for the construction of the ITB building reflects Pertamina's commitment to driving research and technology development to support Pertamina's mission of realizing national energy resilience and independence.

"Cutting-edge research at universities is crucial for Pertamina to tackle the increasingly complex energy challenges. Research-based breakthroughs and innovations by universities can be applied to answer the national energy industry needs," Fadjar said.

Fadjar explained that the construction of the lecture and research building began in November 2023 and is to be completed by early 2025. The lecture and research area will consist of 3 floors, on the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th floors. The 2nd floor will be used for general lecture rooms and multimedia co-working spaces.

"These spaces are used for lectures with large hybrid capacities of up to 500 participants and equipped with discussion rooms," Fadjar said.

The 3rd floor, he clarified, is used for the Open Innovation Laboratory and Computing & Modeling Room. Meanwhile, the 4th floor will be an Intermediate Laboratory capable of accommodating 180 students.

On the 4th floor, there will be 100 acid rooms and 80 research tables supported by instrumentation rooms.

"The activities on the 4th floor focus on preparing students for advanced research. Further, this floor can also function as a collaboration laboratory with the industry," Fadjar added.

Fadjar added that Pertamina and ITB have collaborated on various research projects, including catalysts and chemicals used in oil processing. Pertamina and ITB have successfully developed Indonesia's first catalyst technology called Red and White Catalyst, which plays a crucial role in reducing catalyst imports nationally.

Pertamina, as a leading company in the energy transition, is committed to supporting the Net Zero Emission 2060 target by continuously promoting programs that directly impact the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) achievement. All these efforts align with Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) implementation across all Pertamina's business lines and operations.**