Bahlil Calls The Government Encourages Pertamina To Build An Elpiji Factory

Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Bahlil Lahadalia. (Photo: ANTARA)

JAKARTA - Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Bahlil Lahadalia revealed that his party is currently encouraging PT Pertamina (Persero) to build an LPG factory.

Bahlil said, based on the plan, the production capacity of the factory to be built is estimated at 1.5 million to 2 million tons of LPG.

"Our LPG plant will build, approximately around a capacity of 1.5 million to 2 million. So we encourage two, Pertamina we encourage them to wake up," said Bahlil, quoted on Thursday, November 14.

Not only encouraging Pertamina, Bahlil said the government would also open opportunities for the private sector to participate in building LPG factories.

This is intended so that the private sector can also participate in healthy competitions.

The former chairman of HIPMI said that the domestic LPG needs reached 8 million tons, but Indonesia could only produce 1.9 million tons so imports still had to be carried out.

The amount of LPG subsidies that must be disbursed by the government reaches IDR 83 trillion per year.

"Our LPG imports are now 1 year, the subsidy is IDR 83 trillion. The total LPG consumption is 8 million tons. Domestic products are 1.9 million. The rest are imported," Bahlil explained.

Furthermore, Bahlil also mentioned that the potential of Indonesian natural gas such as propane (C3) and butana (C4) as LPG raw materials only reaches 1.5 to 2 million tons per year.

"After I checked, it turned out that the gas for the C3-C4 LPG raw material could only be 1.5 million to 2 million. We still lack approximately 4 million," he said.

To overcome the shortage of LPG supply, Bahlil also encouraged the acceleration of the construction of gas networks in areas with high gas consumption such as West Java, East Java, Central Java, Banten, DKI Jakarta, and Yogyakarta.

He has also reported the construction of the jargas to President Prabowo Subianto and Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani. Bahlil proposed project development by using funds originating from Non-Tax State Revenue (PNBP).

"If you give it to the private sector, I don't know if one period we can complete the government or not. Sometimes we say yes, but like other trainings, we play differently. So sometimes it's a bit difficult," said Bahlil.