The z=0.89 spiral galaxy located on the line of sight to the quasar PKS1830-211 is right now the extragalactic object with the largest number of detected molecular species (34, plus isotopic variants). This remarkable molecular inventory was recently built after an unbiased spectral survey of molecular absorption lines with the Australia Telescope Compact Array in the 7 mm band. We present the results of this survey, as a showcase of the various interests of molecular absorption studies at intermediate redshift: chemical inventory and gas properties in distant galaxies, chemical enrichment history of the Universe, measurements of the CMB temperature as a function of z, and constraints on the constancy of fundamental constants.
