By Bernard Loebs
Achmad Muchtasyar, the newly-appointed Director General of Oil and Gas at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, has opened the possibility for state-owned electricity firm PT PLN and state-controlled gas distribution company PT PGN Tbk to import LNG if necessary.
When asked by Petromindo whether PGN and PLN would be allowed to import LNG, Achmad Muchtasyar said, “We will study it. It should be allowed, but the regulations need to be adjusted. We must be cautious about this,” he stated during his inauguration as Director General of Oil and Gas on Thursday, January 16.
Petromindo has previously reported on the intentions and efforts of PGN and PLN to import LNG.
Read also : PLN secures LNG needs for 2024 with four December cargoes
PGN anticipates a significant increase in its LNG requirements in 2025, projecting a need for 20 standard cargoes, up sharply from just 3.4 cargoes in 2024, to meet rising domestic demand. PGN’s Corporate Secretary, Fajriah Usman, said the company is exploring the possibility of securing international LNG supplies to meet the projected demand. "If there is a shortfall in Indonesia, we will consider LNG imports from abroad," she said late last year.
PLN is also facing a major LNG shortfall in 2025, with an estimated requirement of 96 cargoes, far exceeding the available supply. Rakhmad Dewanto, Director of Fuels and Gas at PLN EPI, stated, "For 2025, we are still short of 31 LNG cargoes," in an interview with Petromindo.com late last year.
Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak
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