Govt. expands natural gas investment, integrates global markets

Jakarta – As the second largest natural gas producer in the world, the Indonesian government is aggressively expanding investment in gas projects by integrating markets in Asia, America and Europe, officials said Friday (13/5). The step is taken to encourage the use of natural gas as a transitional energy source amidst increasing global primary energy demand and the goal to achieve net zero emissions (NZE).

Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Director General of Oil and Gas Tutuka Ariadji said the ministry is poised to integrate the natural gas market in a number of regions. Natural gas plays an important role as a source of energy balance during the energy transition period.

“The clean energy transition must be carried out comprehensively in various stages by considering competitiveness, cost, availability and sustainability to ensure a smooth transition and energy security is not compromised,” he said in a written release, adding that increasing the role of natural gas through international cooperation with G20 countries is expected to be able to achieve carbon neutrality according to global demands.

Ariadji said that the integration of the gas market in the three largest natural gas regions — Asia, North America and Europe — is deemed necessary to be pursued.

Chair of the G20 Energy Transitions Working Group (ETWG) Yudo Dwinanda Priadi said that excess natural gas can be an energy source that is easy to store, low-carbon options, and able to provide flexible and uninterrupted energy supplies.

He said that the demand for natural gas in Indonesia has also increased since it was first produced in 1965. Currently, more than 60% of Indonesia’s gas production is used to meet domestic needs. In the General National Energy Plan (RUEN), the share of natural gas is targeted to reach 24 percent in the national energy mix by 2050.

“It is undeniable that all countries face an urgent need for sustainable post-pandemic recovery while mitigating the adverse effects of climate change, such as extreme weather disasters,” Priadi said.

“There are about 760 million global population without access to adequate electricity. Then there are 2.5 billion people without access to clean cooking so gas can offer a profitable solution to fight this poverty,” he said. (Hartatik)

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