Cirebon-Semarang Phase II Transmission Natural Gas Pipe Project Officially Begins

A number of workers welded pipes during the first welding of gas pipes in the Batang Integrated Industrial Zone (KITB), Batang Regency, Central Java. (Photo: ANTARA)

JAKARTA - Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Bahlil Lahadalia inaugurated the continuation of the National Strategic Project, namely the Cirebon-Semarang (Cisem) transmission gas pipeline phase 2 of the Batang - Cirebon - Kandang Haur section. The ceremonial is carried out by conducting the Cisem Phase II gas pipe premiere welding in Batang Industrial Estate, Central Java, Monday, September 30.

The Cisem II gas pipeline project, which will be built along 245 KM and using a multi-year contract based on the State Expenditure Expenditure Budget (APBN), is a strategic step for the government to connect the transmission network of transmission natural gas pipelines from East Java to Sumatra, with those already installed, namely the Gresik-Semarang (Gresem) network, connected to Cisem which is connected to the South Sumatra network to West Java (SSWJ), and in the future a Dumai - Sei Mangkei (Dusem) natural gas pipeline will also be built in Sumatra.

In addition, with this integration, it is hoped that the supply of natural gas to various industrial sectors in Central Java will be more secure and stable, considering that as one of the steps in optimizing gas potential originating from the Jambaran Tiung Biru Field (Work Area/WK Blora), Long Term Plan (LTP) WK Cepu (Cendana Field - Old Alas) and Tuban WK (Sur-2 Field).

"Gasnya ada di Jawa Timur, tapi tidak ada infrastruktur yang masuk ke Jawa Tengah. Harga gasnya tidak mahal, tapi kalau tidak diintervensi oleh negara (pembangunan pipa gas Cisem berbasis APBN) pasti tol fee akan mahal. Kalau kita perintah swasta murni yang membangun kita tidak akan mendapat harga gas yang sepenas murah mungkin, yang terjangkau. Maka setu tidak mau kita harus intervensi dengan APBN," ujar Bahlil yang dikutip Selasa, 1 Oktober.

Furthermore, Bahlil said that in addition to industrial areas, the Cisem II gas pipeline project is also expected to encourage the growth of the use of natural gas networks for households (jargas), so as to reduce the use of LPG in the community and ease community spending.

"If this jargas happens, the price is much cheaper than LPG. And no one else says we have difficulty gas, and 3 kg LPG goes up the price. This is the government again designing how to get these pipe channels to the household," he said.

In the phase II cysm gas pipeline project, the budget disbursed, explained Bahlil, amounting to Rp2.7 trillion from the APBN which will be carried out for 18 months for three years. So that it is targeted for completion in the first quarter of 2026.

The beneficiaries of the construction of the Cisem II project are Balongan Refinery, various industries in the West Java region, household Jargas, and additional needs from Pupuk Kujang. The existence of the Cisem Phase II project will complement Cisem Phase I with a length of 60 km which will be completed in 2023 and has been operating to supply natural gas needs in the Kendal Industrial Estate as of November 17, 2023, as well as the Batang Industrial Estate as of July 27, 2024.