Indorama Corporation, a major global manufacturer of industrial raw materials, is set to invest $2 billion in a blue ammonia project in Louisiana as part of its global expansion strategy and to counter rising U.S. trade barriers, according to Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for the Economy Airlangga Hartarto.

The investment comes in response to a newly imposed 32% import tariff introduced by former President Donald Trump under a reciprocal trade policy targeting Indonesian goods. The project aims to strengthen Indorama’s presence in the U.S. while diversifying its sustainable product portfolio.

“Indorama is a multi-product company. From its roots in Purwakarta, it has expanded to many countries, including the U.S., where it operates a PET plant that produces beverage bottles,” Airlangga said during a press briefing on April 28.

The planned facility is currently in the front-end engineering design phase and will produce blue ammonia, an environmentally friendly alternative to traditional ammonia, by utilizing carbon capture technologies to lower greenhouse gas emissions. This development highlights Indorama’s increasing focus on green innovation and climate-conscious industrial practices.

Founded in Indonesia in 1975 by M.L. Lohia, Indorama began with a cotton yarn spinning mill in 1976. The company soon diversified, adding disposable glove production by 1989 and launching Indonesia’s first polyester fiber plant in 1991. In 1995, it established the nation’s first PET plastic bottle manufacturing plant.

Indorama initiated its international expansion in 1998 by establishing a textile spinning facility in Türkiye. In 2004, the company opened its first upstream petrochemical plant in Thailand for the production of purified terephthalic acid (PTA).

The company continued to grow through strategic acquisitions, including a leading olefin producer in Nigeria in 2006. In 2010, it launched Indorama Ventures, which marked a new chapter in the company's global ambitions. In 2011, it entered the Uzbek market with a yarn spinning facility and, by 2012, had expanded its operations in India and Malaysia through spandex production and strategic acquisitions.

Between 2014 and 2023, Indorama expanded its presence in the fertilizer sector through strategic acquisitions and the establishment of operations in Senegal, Nigeria, India, Uzbekistan, Brazil, and Georgia. Its latest acquisitions—JSC FerganaAzot in Uzbekistan, TAK-Agro in Nigeria, and Rustavi Azot in Georgia—were all finalized in 2023.

The Louisiana project reinforces Indorama’s commitment to sustainability and strategic adaptation in the face of shifting global trade dynamics.