DPR Called Pertamina's IPO The Same As Pawing Indonesia's Energy Security

Capture the screen of DPR Commission VII Member Ratna Juwita. (Mery Handayani / VOI)

JAKARTA - PT Pertamina (Persero) 's plan to take the floor on the stock exchange or conduct an Initial Public Offering (IPO), received a hot question from Commission VII of the DPR RI. According to the DPR, this plan is not quite right if you see the condition of Indonesia which is still depressed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

DPR Commission VII member Ratna Juwita questioned whether the IPO plan was timely. Because, according to him, no one can confirm that within the next one or two years the financial market will improve.

Meanwhile, BUMN Minister Erick Thohir has stated to the public that this IPO will be carried out within the next one to two years.

"Interactive permission from the leadership with Mr. Iman, I am interested in the explanation you gave that the IPO is a matter of timing. I want to ask in your opinion if the IPO discourse we are talking about today is the right timing or not? Currently there is COVID-19 hitting the global economy. "he said, the Commission VII hearing with the President Director of Pertamina, Monday, June 29.

According to Ratna, with a simple thought, no matter how good the condition of the company is, but if the market is bad and it is uncertain when the pandemic will end, then the IPO plan is tantamount to mortgaging Indonesia's energy security going forward.

"We cannot assume when this pandemic will end. It is the same as us pawning in our" future "energy security as our leadership. So this way, right now we are focused on being able to jointly restore the condition of society in general in Indonesia, so that we we can both rise and we can work together, "he said.

Furthermore, Ratna said, Pertamina is one of the most important sectors of the discourse on economic recovery echoed by the government.

"What I want to convey here is how come there is a very extreme discourse today about the existence of this IPO. First, does Pertamina really have a plan that with this IPO we are sure we can't have this energy security ?," he explained.

Ratna also questioned whether the IPO decision could guarantee energy security that could be passed on to the children and grandchildren of Indonesian administrators. If there is such a guarantee, can with this scheme Pertamina also provide maximum service to the people today?

"Meanwhile, we know that our imports are still that high, which is also very burdensome to our current state budget finances," he said.

Based on Article 33 of the 1945 Constitution, said Ratna, Pertamina has an inherited work area with full privileges. This means that the government provides all the privileges so that Pertamina can be competitive and provide the best in terms of quantity and quality to the Indonesian people.

However, said Ratna, if there is already an IPO discourse, this privilege must be revoked. "Firm or not Pertamina if for example this privilege is revoked? With the stipulation of Standard Exploration Standard (PSE) which is 85 percent and 15 percent? Firm or not," he said.

"So I think like this, it would be better if Pertamina is serious about providing maximum service and providing a scheme that is not too extreme that shocks everyone," he said.

Then, Ratna suggested that the President Director of PT Pertamina Nicke Widyawati to focus on oil refineries, rather than developing an IPO plan amid uncertainty about when the COVID-19 pandemic will end.

"Ma'am, I ask for your help, Ma'am, instead of worrying about developing the IPO discourse, it's better for you to maximize your refineries and make sure the refineries can manage the crude oil we have. So that we don't need to import crude oil anymore," he said.

Legal Standing Questions

Likewise, Commission VII member Rusdy Mas'ud asked Pertamina to think about the steps that have already begun to be discussed with the public. One of the things that Pertamina must pay attention to before the IPO is regarding its legal standing.

"I am highlighting its legal standing because it should not be a problem in the future. It is related to legal standing," he said.

Rusdy said the IPO plan would have a big impact on Pertamina from a business perspective. So he emphasized that the process should not be arbitrary. A careful study is needed before making a decision regarding this IPO.

"In my opinion, there will be an activity called the transfer of shares from holding to sub holding. Moreover, this is virtual. I am worried because virtual work habits will have legal standing, financial taxation is also virtual," he explained.

To deal with this, Director of Strategy, Portfolio & Business Development Iman Rachman said, based on the experience of a good company but a low stock price index, sales are not optimal.

"So if you can see today's index at 4,000, while previously COVID-19 our stock price index was at 6,000. So any company because of the IPO has the best pricing for the stock price of Ma'am. If you ask me if today want an IPO, certainly not optimal, "explained Iman.