Geez! Sri Mulyani Reveals Energy Subsidy Swelled 347 Percent Impact Of Oil Price Increase

Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - Minister of Finance (Minister of Finance) Sri Mulyani stated that the government had disbursed at least Rp. 10.2 trillion to fulfill the mandatory energy subsidy throughout January 2022.

According to the Minister of Finance, this figure shot up very high, namely 347 percent when compared to the January 2021 period which was only Rp. 2.3 trillion. Despite experiencing extraordinary growth, he sees this as a form of state presence for vulnerable people who still need assistance.

"The operation of the state budget is very real in protecting the public, namely from the increase in energy prices which have soared very high," he said through a virtual channel when holding a press conference on our state budget recently.

The Minister of Finance explained that the significant realization in the first month of 2022 could not be separated from the underpayment of subsidies for fuel oil (BBM) and 3 Kg LPG for the 2020 fiscal year and in the current budget year.

"Highly rising oil prices have caused our energy subsidies to become bigger and this can be seen from the realization of subsidy payments, especially for subsidies for fuel and 3 kg LPG that we pay to business units," he said.

In previous editorial reports, oil prices continued to soar in Asian trading on Thursday last week to the level of 120 US dollars per barrel. The record is the highest in almost a decade.

Not only that, based on the International Energy Agency (IEA) report in February 2022, there is an increase in the projected annual growth of world oil demand by 3.2 million barrels per day to 100.6 million barrels per day triggered by the easing of COVID-19 restrictions. This situation is getting more complex with the military crisis in Eastern Europe which causes uncertainty to continue.

"So in this case the State Budget is indeed a guard or a means to protect the community. Of course, this is a real burden for the state budget," concluded Finance Minister Sri Mulyani.