The Ministry Of Industry EMPHASIZED That HGBT Did Not Work Well To Influence The Manufacturing Industry

Illustration. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin) emphasized that the implementation of certain natural gas prices (HGBT) that did not run well also affected the current condition of the manufacturing industry.

Spokesperson for the Ministry of Industry Febri Hendri Antoni Arif said the manufacturing industry is still facing challenges that affect its productivity and competitiveness.

In addition to global economic conditions that affect demand, the manufacturing sector is also facing a weakened rupiah exchange rate resulting in soaring raw material prices and production costs.

"Further externalities that have an impact on the manufacturing industry are HGBT policies that are not going well. Some industries actually buy prices above USD 6 per MMBTU, thereby reducing the competitiveness of their products," said Febri in a written statement received by VOI, Thursday, November 2.

Febri assessed that HGBT for the industrial sector must be carried out appropriately according to applicable regulations. This is because the issue of increasing HGBT will affect industrial competitiveness.

The expansion of the HGBT program will also have an impact on increasing investment in the industrial sector in Indonesia due to the availability of competitive energy.

"Moreover, the government is focused on continuing to increase investment and performance in the manufacturing industry sector because it is the main driving force for national economic growth," he said.

He noted that several obstacles to the implementation of HGBT, including the industrial sector, experienced restrictions on natural gas supply under contract volume.

For example, in East Java there is a quota limitation between 27-80 percent of contracts and the imposition of daily surcharge for excess usage of quotas set in almost all companies.

Then, there is still an HGBT recipient industry that gets prices above 6 US dollars per MMBTU, and there is even a user industry sector that has not received HGBT. The industrial sector has been recommended by the Minister of Industry Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita from April 2021 to August 2022.

"We encourage the HGBT policy for the manufacturing sector to be implemented by enforcing the rules," concluded Febri.