BPH Migas Affirms The Importance Of Optimizing Natural Gas As Transition Energy

Illustration. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - The Downstream Oil and Gas Regulatory Agency (BPH Migas) emphasized the importance of utilizing natural gas as an energy transition to Net Zero Emission (NZE). Seeing its very strategic role, acceleration is carried out in order to optimize this most environmentally friendly fossil fuel.

"Energy transition, increased use of low-carbon fuels, and the development of energy infrastructure in the context of providing fair energy is a strategic issue in the energy sector which is currently the main focus," said Member of the BPH Migas Committee, Iwan Prasetya Adhi, in a statement to reporters, Monday, August 12.

Especially for natural gas, efforts to optimize its utilization are based on its sufficient availability and more environmentally friendly than other fossil energy. The factor in the availability of natural gas is also economically positive because with the large volume of reserves available, it will be more profitable because long-term, transparent, and reliable planning can be carried out.

Even so, Iwan acknowledged that there are still a number of challenges in the context of optimizing natural gas as energy for this transition. Among them are the need to increase infrastructure availability, investment interest, certainty of natural gas supply and ease of bureaucracy, and licensing.

"In order for optimality (earth gas) to run smoothly, cross-sectoral and long-term energy planning is needed," he said.

So this is also one of the important discussion points in the Working Meeting of BPH Migas Semester I for Fiscal Year 2024 in Bandung, West Java on August 8, 2024 and is part of the written remarks of Head of BPH Migas Erika Retnowati. In line with the theme raised at the Working Meeting, namely "Accelerated Natural Gas Utilization in Energy Transition Towards Net Zero Emission".

Iwan revealed that the application of more environmentally friendly fuel oil (BBM) and increasing the use of natural gas as transitional energy should be considered in the preparation of long-term work programs and BPH Migas annual work plans.

"Ections of BPH Migas as the governing body in the downstream oil and gas sector need to be supported by an activity program that takes into account oil and gas developments and remains guided by the prevailing laws," he explained.

As an initiative, BPH Migas held a panel discussion at its Working Meeting to increase knowledge and input material related to the development of policy directions for transporting and trading natural gas through pipes in supporting this energy transition. Presenting stakeholders include the Directorate General of Oil and Gas of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Directorate General of Chemistry, Pharmacy, and Textiles of the Ministry of Industry, SKK Migas, and the Indonesian Natural Gas Company Association.

Regarding the optimization of natural gas as transition energy, a revision of the BPH Migas Regulation Number 20 of 2019 concerning the Transmission and/or Region of the Natural Gas Distribution Network in the Context of Providing Special Rights. The harmonization process with the Ministry of Law and Human Rights (Kemenkum HAM) on this regulation has also been completed in the first semester of 2024.